


find me in your arms

by mikararinna



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, M/M, Misunderstandings, Romantic Soulmates, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, members appearance in that order
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-09-30 16:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17227157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikararinna/pseuds/mikararinna
Summary: He opened the front side camera and stared at himself. He held out the same few strands of hair from before. There was no mistaking it. He took a few pictures just for confirmation. It was still there.His hair was turningwhite.But how? It was almost impossible. Hyungwon hadn't seen anyone new for the past few years. And if he was starting to have white hair that meant he had met his soulmate for quite some time now. Which was impossible. He knew a lot of people from college but even then not all of them had stuck around. Not to the point where he would start to age again. Unless...unless.Unless Minhyuk was his soulmate.





	find me in your arms

If you were to place Chae Hyungwon in one room, it would be a crime to not place Lee Minhyuk with him in the same room. It was sort of the laws of the universe. There was no way the male could go somewhere else without the other male and vice versa. It was how their dynamics worked, if one may say. Hyungwon and Minhyuk had been together their whole life, even before they understood the meaning of life. It was odd to not see them clung onto the other. They were each other's everything.

Lee Minhyuk was born on 3rd of November 1993, approximately two months before Chae Hyungwon was born on the 15th of January 1994. Their parents were friends from high school and by some sort of wicked fate became neighbours after going off radar from each other.

It was only natural for Hyungwon and Minhyuk to become friends. Especially when they were neighbours and close in age. It could also explain why they were so inseparable. Even when they were toddlers, there was no way to pull them apart.

Hyungwon was quiet and reserved even as a toddler. He got fussy whenever someone he didn't know were to touch him. Only his parents were allowed to hold him in their arms. With the exception of Minhyuk. Minhyuk loved being coddled by people. As a toddler, he wasn't afraid to let strangers hold him or play with him. His parents were worried and had to keep a close eye on him if someone decided to kidnap their son while their son remained oblivious.

But more than anything, Minhyuk liked to coddle Hyungwon. It wasn't just the few occurrence whenever their family came together. It happened a lot of times that even their parents had caught it on tape.

They were in the playpen in Minhyuk's house, their parents busy conversing with each other. They were barely talking, Minhyuk only turning two a month ago and Hyungwon about to turn two soon. Hyungwon and Minhyuk were each busy playing their own toys; Hyungwon with his soft blocks and Minhyuk with his singing toy bus.

Minhyuk had got bored, his lips in a pout when he glanced over at Hyungwon. Hyungwon didn't seem to notice when Minhyuk had crawled over. By then Minhyuk could walk (and run) just fine but he somehow preferred to crawl, especially when he had something in mind. He crawled over to Hyungwon and without warning, pulled him into a hug.

Their parents were silently watching the exchange. Hyungwon's parents were at the edge of their seat, ready to sprung up if Hyungwon were to merely open his mouth. Hyungwon didn't like being touch by others unless he was initiating it. They waited, a minute, two. Hyungwon moved slightly. Their breathing hitched. But instead of wailing, Hyungwon had settled back onto Minhyuk, even melting against him. They let out a sigh of relief. They knew then that there was nothing that could separate them.

 

 

"Guess they're finally asleep," Hyungwon's mother breathed out a sigh of relief.

Hyungwon and Minhyuk had been fussy all morning. They had wailed and thrashed around, throwing tantrums that threw both of their mothers off axis. It was when Minhyuk's mother had brought them to Hyungwon's house for their usual playdate that the two toddlers finally settled down. They weren't crying anymore, both of them happily playing together that their mothers finally managed to relax.

But their playtime was simply cut short. They had probably worn themselves out from fussing around that they had felt asleep two hours into their playdate. Their playdates usually dragged for hours, sometimes one of their mothers had to leave them for awhile to prepare dinner; sometimes their fathers came back home from work and had to pull them apart which caused more tantrums. It was a pleasant surprise that they had felt asleep so soon.

It was a good thing too when it was almost time for dinner. Minhyuk's mother had brought him home while Hyungwon's mother got ready for dinner.

It was a quiet dinner for both parents. Both the toddlers were asleep in their respective cribs. The sun set and the dishes were done. It wasn't until his parents had gotten ready for bed that Hyungwon started wailing loudly. Both his parent sprung out of bed and rushed over to him.

His father picked him up, gently bouncing him in his arm. His father winced when a particularly loud wail had reached his ear. His mother came running in with a bottle of milk, assuming that he was hungry since he didn't have dinner. But Hyungwon violently threw the bottle of milk. His mother said he wasn't such an aggressive toddler usually yet something was off that night.

"Hyungwon, darling, what's wrong?" His father coaxed softly at him. His mother checked his diaper and it wasn't about that either.

"Minmin! Minmin!" Hyungwon wailed.

By then he had learn to talk a little but it was limited to certain words. Words like hungry or mama was easy for their parents to tend to. Yet that night he had cried out Minhyuk's nickname that he gave for the other. Hyungwon's parents were at a loss.

"Darling, Minmin is at his home." His mother said softly.

Hyungwon wailed louder. "Want Minmin!"

His mother's phone rang, a video call from Minhyuk's mother. She quickly answered it only to be met with another wail. The wail was louder and sounded more shrill. Minhyuk was the only one who could cry like that.

"I'm sorry for calling you so late at night." Minhyuk's mother had said in a rush. She sounded breathless, probably had been trying to calm down Minhyuk as well. "But Minhyuk has been calling out for Hyungwon and-"

She didn't get to finish her words as Minhyuk cut her off with another wail. It sounded shrill and almost intangible but it was no mistake that Minhyuk had been calling out for Hyungwon. Minhyuk's mother quickly aimed the camera towards Minhyuk and Hyungwon's mother had did the same to him. They moved to the living room where Hyungwon's father sat on the couch with Hyungwon in his lap.

"Hyungwonnie look, it's Minhyuk on the other side." His mother whispered softly as she showed the front screen to Hyungwon.

Hyungwon stopped wailing for a minute. He sniffled and his eyes blinked away the residue tears. His big eyes stared at the screen at Minhyuk. Minhyuk had stopped wailing too. Only little hiccups and sniffles could be heard.

"Won'ie?" Minhyuk called out from the other side. He grabbed the phone from his mother and hold it to his face.

Hyungwon giggled. "Minmin!" he cheered, no more tears in his eyes. Minhyuk smiled, showing off his two baby teeth.

"Won'ie!" Minhyuk said. "Mama, Won'ie!" He said excitedly.

"Yes, yes, Wonnie's there, see?" She replied.

Their parents held their breath when both of them touch the screen. They were scared that both toddlers would throw another tantrum when they found out that neither of them was within reach, just a screen between the two. But neither toddlers cried anymore as they stared at each other. Their eyes glassy from the leftover tears. They stared at each other until a few minutes later, their eyes fluttered shut and their breathing evened out. Hands still clutching onto the phone.

 

 

Minhyuk walked over to the baby crib placed in the middle of the nursery room. Hyungwon followed him. He stood beside Minhyuk, hands holding the white rails. Inside the crib was a baby boy, still pink in the face. He was sleeping soundly, covered up with a blanket and a hat.

"He's so cute, isn't he, Wonnie?" Minhyuk had whispered.

Hyungwon looked at the baby. He was kinda cute, Hyungwon admitted. But it was hard to tell. The baby's eyelids were shut. His chest rise and fall steadily. Hyungwon hadn't seen his baby brother up close before. His parents had just got back from the hospital yesterday and his grandparents had only sent him back home a few hours earlier. He hadn't properly look at the baby yet so Hyungwon couldn't say that the baby was cute. Or if he would enjoy his presence.

"I guess." Hyungwon replied nonchalantly.

Minhyuk's hand escaped through the gaps in the railings. His hand reached out and he poked the baby's cheeks. He did it a few times until the baby squirmed slightly. Hyungwon wanted to ask Minhyuk to stop poking at the baby's cheeks. He didn't think it was a good idea. But he didn't have to say anything because soon enough the baby opened his mouth and started crying.

Minhyuk looked startled, Hyungwon less so. He expected as much. Nobody should disturb a sleeping baby. Nobody should disturb anybody who was asleep anyways. His father came in, quickly picking up the baby in his arm.

"I'm sorry!" Minhyuk exclaimed. His eyes was bigger than usual, his lips trembling like he was about to cry. "I- I didn't mean to wake him up."

Hyungwon's father smiled at him. He hold the baby in one arm while his other hand reached out to ruffle Minhyuk's hair. "It's okay Minhyuk. I think baby Kyungwon had slept enough anyway. It's time he finally meet the family."

Hyungwon didn't know why but his expression turned sour at his new brother's name. It was a weird feeling. He didn't get to delve deeper into that emotion when his father had walked out of the nursery room, gesturing the two of them to follow him. Minhyuk tugged his arm and made them walk into the living room.

His mother was there, so was his grandparents and Minhyuk's parents. Everyone looked excited at the presence of his father with the baby in his arms. Hyungwon still refused to call him Kyungwon even if that was his name.

The sour feeling in him turned bitter. Hyungwon's father handed the baby to his mother and everyone huddled closer to her. The baby had stopped crying, large eyes looking at all the different faces. Minhyuk had let go of his wrist and walked over to his mother, standing in front of the baby with curious eyes. Everyone had been cooing at the baby, letting the baby gripped their finger with his tiny hands. Something akin to jealousy bubbled inside him.

Minhyuk poked the baby's cheeks again. Instead of crying, the baby's eyes turned into two little crescent. The baby was smiling, two little dimples adorning his cheeks. Hyungwon wished he had dimples. Everyone said having dimples were cute. Minhyuk seemed satisfied with the baby's reaction as he continued to poke his cheeks.

His mother's eyes finally locked with his. She smiled. It felt like she only noticed Hyungwon now. "Come here Hyungwon, greet your little brother."

Hyungwon's eyes narrowed down at the baby. Everyone else in the room was looking at him expectantly. "No!" He huffed out, startling everyone. He turned around, arms crossed and stomped back to his bedroom.

Hyungwon slammed the door shut. He plopped himself down in the room and proceeded to play with his toy trains. He could hear noises outside but refused to budge. It they needed him they would be there in his room. Hyungwon knew he was being a brat yet he couldn't help it. There was just something weird about seeing someone new in his house.

His bedroom door was opened by someone. Hyungwon didn't turn around to look. "Wonnie?" Minhyuk called out to him. Hyungwon didn't move.

Minhyuk sat beside him. He stared as Hyungwon played with his toy trains. "Wonnie, are you okay?"

There was no answer. Hyungwon didn't plan on answering him. Minhyuk could tell just by him ignoring him that he was sulking. "Wonnie, do you hate Kyungwonnie?"

Hyungwon scowled at the new nickname. "Does Minmin like the baby?" He still didn't want to call him by his name. It felt weird.

Minhyuk nodded his head. "He's cute."

"Okay." Hyungwon answered.

"But Wonnie will always be Minmin's best friend."

Hyungwon looked at Minhyuk. "Really?"

"Really."

Hyungwon nodded his head too. He continued playing with his toy trains. "Does Mama and Papa love the baby more than Wonnie?"

Minhyuk shook his head. "No. Mama and Papa love Wonnie just as much as the baby."

"How much?"

Minhyuk stretched out his five-year-old arms as wide as he could. "This much!" He drawled out, nearly toppling to the back.

Hyungwon giggled. And then he looked sad. "Is everyone angry at me?"

Minhyuk shook his head again. "No. Maybe a little bit surprised."

"Hyungwonnie is sorry." Hyungwon mumbled. "Wonnie didn't want to be rude but Wonnie is scared everyone will forget Wonnie."

Minhyuk engulfed Hyungwon in a hug. He pulled Hyungwon closer, almost crushing him in the hug. "Nobody will forget Wonnie. Everyone loves Wonnie. Minmin loves Wonnie too. So much."

Hyungwon smiled and hugged back. "Wonnie loves Minmin too." he said. "Thank you,"

They walked back hand-in-hand to the living room. Hyungwon apologized to everyone for being rude. They told him that there was nothing for him to worry as everyone still loved him the same, even after Kyungwon's birth. Hyungwon walked up to his baby brother and apologized to him too. He let Kyungwon hold onto his finger with his tiny hand, just like everyone else did. He decided that he loved his younger brother so much. Even if he did have to split his attention between his brother and Minhyuk sometimes.

 

 

Hyungwon remembered being seven years old and staring at the white streaks in his mother's hair. He had never seen them before. But he saw the same thing on his father's hair later that day. It was almost identical.

The next day, he saw a huge red dot under his father's chin. It looked ugly and Hyungwon voiced it out to his father. His father merely laughed at that and blew raspberries on his little tummy that he wouldn't stop laughing the whole afternoon.

Hyungwon remembered being seven years old with the snow falling outside his house when he discovered the idea of soulmates. The thought of someone out there who he could grow old with and loved them for the rest of his life. The thought of his parents who looked at each other like they were each other's universe and how much they loved each other. The idea of soulmates sounded interesting. Hyungwon figured he liked that.

 

 

There was a dull buzz ringing in his ears. The sunlight streamed through the opened windows. There was loud noises of chairs scraping against the tiled floor. Hyungwon didn't deterred. He buried his face in his folded arms and continued his nap. He only awoke when there was two light taps on his shoulders.

"Fell asleep again?" Hyungwon heard as he roused from his nap. He blinked his eyes sleepily and gave a lopsided smile to Minhyuk when his vision became clear.

"Maths is just boring." Hyungwon replied.

"It's the third time this week," Minhyuk said, shaking his head. "Come on, let's have lunch."

Middle school wasn't as much different than elementary school. More things to study, more homeworks piled up and just the littlest amount of stress making itself known. Hyungwon was glad for the youth in him that stuck around. It made it easier to go through classes and finish his homeworks when he realized he still had the chance to goof around.

And he was glad for Minhyuk who stuck around too. They had entered the same grade school and now, middle school. Hyungwon didn't know if it was a natural choice of Minhyuk, their parents persistency or because that was the only middle school that was near their neighbourhood. Either way, Hyungwon was glad. He didn't have to force himself into making new friends as Minhyuk was the only friend he wanted, the only one he need.

He was met with a surprise when he stood in front of a male with brunette hair, short, both his hair and his height. "This is Kihyun." Minhyuk said. "He's in my class."

Hyungwon arched an eyebrow at him. And Hyungwon needed to know this _why_ exactly? He didn't need Minhyuk to rub it in his face that they weren't classmates. It was enough that he sulked himself in class.

"Okay." He replied, indifferent.

"I ask him to join us for lunch. That's okay with you, right?" Minhyuk asked.

It didn't make much difference. Kihyun was already standing there. Saying no didn't make Kihyun disappeared permanently from their lives. He just needed to swallow down the fire of hate. Maybe Kihyun could get the hint and leave them.

"Whatever," Hyungwon said, walking ahead.

Minhyuk brightened up and followed him, Kihyun walking alongside them. Kihyun didn't talk much with Hyungwon but keep up a constant banter with Minhyuk. Hyungwon decided that maybe he really didn't like Kihyun. Or anyone who was in close proximity with Minhyuk and could make Minhyuk so happy. Only Hyungwon could do that.

It wasn't until a week later maybe that he realized he didn't actually hate Kihyun as much.

Hyungwon was maybe a little bit gullible and a whole lot oblivious. He was smart when it came to academics but he wasn't the brightest when it came to understanding people. When he went out to throw away the class trash for the day, he really didn't know what to expect. There was a group of upperclassmen, gathered around at one corner. They stared at him, glare menacing and frightening.

"What are you doing here, punk?" One of the upperclassmen said, with blonde hair sticking everything and ears full of piercings. Was that even allowed?

"Nothing. I was just here and," Hyungwon stammered. He noticed the cigarette stick on someone's hand. His face expression changed.

Their leader, as Hyungwon assumed, with the blonde hair and piercings snickered at him. He gestured towards the cigarette in his hand. "What? Want to confide us to the teacher?" He sneered.

"N-no, if you let me go then-"

"Bold of you to assume we'll let you go." Another upperclassman said. "We'll give you a little parting gift before you leave. Just enough for you to not speak for another week maybe. Then we'll give you more gifts. Aren't you excited?"

They stepped forward, caging him like an animal. Hyungwon trembled under their stares. There was no way he could run like this. And fighting them was not an option. Hyungwon's thin arms was no competition to their buff figures. One of them raised their fist. Hyungwon closed his eyes. But the blow never came.

"Teacher, I saw the smoke here!" A voice said.

"Shit. Run!" The upperclassmen scampered away. Hyungwon sighed in relief as he slid down to the ground, legs still trembling.

Hyungwon saw Kihyun rushing over to him and fussing about. "Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Thank you." Hyungwon breathed out.

Kihyun sighed. "You shouldn't have encourage them."

"I didn't. But they felt threatened."

"You're like a ragdoll. You're harmless."

"It's enough to feed their ego."

Kihyun sighed again. "You should be mindful of your surroundings next time."

He sat down on the ground beside Hyungwon, leaning against the wall behind them. They were quiet. Hyungwon should get up now. Classes would start again soon and as much as he didn't like staying awake in class, he couldn't miss it. He was about to leave when Kihyun spoke.

"I'm not trying to steal Minhyuk from you, if you're wondering." Hyungwon settled back down. "I know he means a lot to you and so are you to him. He talks a lot about you in class, sometimes too much that it gets annoying but I can see that he genuinely cares for you."

"I'm not here to disrupt your friendship. Minhyuk persuade me to join you two, I'm only here to stop him from bugging me. I'm not asking you to be my best friend or wanting Minhyuk to be mine but I hope you're more accepting of me in your little duo. Minhyuk is actually a fun guy to hang out with."

Kihyun stood up, dusting away the dirt sticking to his pants. He stretched out his limbs before looking at Hyungwon. "See you at lunch, I guess. That is, if you're willing to see me there." He said and left.

Hyungwon went to lunch feeling more accepting of Kihyun. They never discuss what they said on that day but something had change between them. Hyungwon decided he didn't hate Kihyun, maybe still disliking him a little when they argued about the simplest things. He also learnt to accept others more, letting them into his little universe with careful steps.

 

 

Hyungwon remembered high school in one word, hectic. His first and second year had gone by in a blur. And by the time he was in third-year, he was already too busy preparing for college.

Soulmates were re-introduced to them in Physical Education class of their third-year. It was a short topic that was dragged for only two classes. Hyungwon thought there wasn't enough knowledge that was taught to the students who were about to enter another chapter in their life. His teachers thought it was sufficient for them. They would understand more about soulmates when they finally met their soulmate.

Minhyuk and Kihyun didn't seem to care much about soulmates though. Hyungwon guessed he shouldn't care as much either. When the time came, the universe would bring his soulmate to him and Hyungwon should just learn to wait.

A year passed by too soon in Hyungwon's opinion. He was seated at the Lee family's dining table alongside his parents and his brother. In a week's time Hyungwon and Minhyuk would be graduating high school. They were free of school uniforms and free from the place reeking of teenage adolescence. It was a great achievement.

Hyungwon and Minhyuk had both went for their college entrance exams, both getting into the same college with Hyungwon taking a course in law while Minhyuk took a course in visual arts. Hyungwon wondered if he would forever be bound with Minhyuk. It was a possibility. Kihyun also got into the college of his choice, a different one from theirs but still nearby.

Hyungwon had decided that Kihyun might also be a big constant in his life. Stuck around him like Minhyuk for as long as he decided to be.

Dinner with the Lees are always fun. Sometimes loud. Minhyuk's mother made the best black bean noodles but Hyungwon didn't talk about it in front of anyone, afraid that it would offend his own mother. His mother did cook the best bulgogi anyways.

"Growing up together, getting into the same school and now into the same college." His mother said. "You two are destined to be together."

Minhyuk's mother laughed. "Don't they now? Maybe they will be each other's soulmate."

Hyungwon flushed a bright red. He glanced over at Minhyuk. The other male was busy staring down at his plate and feeding himself pieces of kimchi. He wasn't into the conversation.

"Now, now ladies. There's no rush." Minhyuk's father had said. "Both of them haven't turn 18 yet. We'll have to wait."

Their mothers giggled.

"But it would be nice if we end up being in-laws, no?" Minhyuk's mother cut in.

"It's a nice thought. But we wouldn't need to be in-laws to stay in touch with each other." Hyungwon's father said.

The conversation of soulmates carried on when Kyungwon asked them to elaborate more about it. Hyungwon and Minhyuk didn't bother joining in. They dig into their dinner, quietly listen as their family talked. Hyungwon would occasionally glanced at Minhyuk but the other didn't return the gaze.

Hyungwon thought about it. The idea of soulmate was fascinating even to an almost graduating 17 years old Hyungwon. He grew up with the idea of soulmates, his parents loved to talk about how they realized they were meant for each other. Two friends from the same circle who found each other and fell in love. It was a simple story but it was beautiful to Hyungwon when his parents retold the story over and over again, the love and affection twinkling in their eyes never fading.

Hyungwon gave it a thought, to figure out how would it feel if his own best friend was his soulmate. He let the thought stay in his mind.

 

 

The first year in college, Hyungwon stayed in the college dorms. College freshmen were given a choice to either stay on campus or they could find a place to rent somewhere. It was their first time around in Seoul, first time living so far away from their parents, staying in the dorms was the best choice.

They did part-time jobs, earn some extra money, half they saved for later while the other they used up on daily necessities. Their parents insist that they could just ask for money if they really needed it. Hyungwon and Minhyuk didn't exactly live in luxuries but their parents could afford to spare a few change for them.

Yet they still decided on doing part-time jobs. It didn't take a toll in their studies and it was sorta fun, minus the occasional rude customers. They realized they couldn't rely on their parents anymore, they weren't children anymore. They needed to learn on how to survive adulthood.

Another part of them was planning to save for the future. Only freshmen were allowed to rent the dorms. When they hit their second year, they would need to move out and find a new place to stay.

In the midst of college assignments and brewing coffee, Hyungwon and Minhyuk find the short time to meet up. Kihyun too spared a few lunches with them whenever he wasn't busy with his own course. They were living just fine.

When they were in second year, they weren't allowed to stay in the campus dorms anymore. Hyungwon didn't mind that much, he disliked his roommate anyways. His roommate was loud and always came home late and drunk. Hyungwon was glad he didn't have to room with him any longer.

Hyungwon met up with Minhyuk at the usual café. They were due to move out in two weeks. They still have no idea where to go. It was Minhyuk who first voiced out for them to rent out an apartment together. Hyungwon was okay with it. Living with Minhyuk was way better than living with strangers. They knew each other well enough to adapt with each other's habits. They asked Kihyun if he wanted to rent out an apartment together. Kihyun declined, said he was already living with his boyfriend.

Hyungwon arched an eyebrow. "Your soulmate?"

Kihyun snorted. "No. I said boyfriend didn't I? He's not my soulmate."

Hyungwon didn't ask further. He knew Kihyun had a rough background growing up. He knew Kihyun didn't believe in the idea of soulmates. He knew Kihyun would keep fooling around until he felt bored. But who was Hyungwon to judge? Kihyun knew what he was doing.

Minhyuk helped them find a cheap apartment near their college. It wasn't big but it wasn't small either. There was two bedrooms, a shared bathroom and a kitchen he knew neither of them would use other than for instant noodles. They didn't have much things to begin with so the unpacking didn't took more than a day.

The apartment was mostly bare when they moved in. With only a bed in each room, a used couch, an old TV and a microwave. They worked hard, saved a little and bought a better couch. Over time there was a little bit of Hyungwon and a little bit of Minhyuk laying around the apartment. It wasn't the best but it was enough. They learned to use the allowance given to them by their parents wisely, spending extra on expensive foods once a month.

They were living good, balancing between college, work and their social life. Sometimes, when one of them was feeling stressed, they would take long night walks around Seoul. They wouldn't talk, wouldn't force the another to say anything because they didn't need words to understand each other. Hyungwon felt peace living together with Minhyuk in Seoul. It felt like home, like back in Gwangju with his family.

Seoul was big but with the right friends and the right people, everything was bearable. Hyungwon met a lot of amazing people while in college. Hoseok, a year older with a tough appearance but a soft heart. Changkyun who was a few years younger and had accidentally took Hyungwon's notebook instead of his own during Hyungwon's third year. They were the ones who stuck around, the ones Hyungwon actually liked.

Two months before they completed their final year, they moved into a new apartment with a little help from their parents. Hyungwon wondered if he would continue to be housemates with Minhyuk. Maybe until they found a job, maybe until they found their soulmate, maybe until they got tired of each other.

Hyungwon realized that he didn't mind being housemates with Minhyuk. Sure, they argued from time to time. Someone got pissed and maybe they ticked off one another. But years of friendship could never compare to a silly argument. They would come back to each other with long apologies. They weren't childish. They knew if they were wrong and they would apologize. It was what made their friendship stronger.

Hyungwon realized then that it would be a long time till they started getting tired of each other. If they had been together for this long, what was another few years? He guessed he would stick around Minhyuk a little longer.

 

 

  
It was a week before they graduate college. Hyungwon had been lounging on the couch, flipping the channel until he could find something that entertained him. He was engrossed in the drama re-runs when Minhyuk came home with bottles of soju. Hyungwon looked at him.

"What's that for?" He asked.

"Let's drink," Minhyuk had answered. "Let's drink and forget that soon enough our responsibilities will pile up. Let's drink to forget."

Hyungwon agreed.

They opened the sliding door to their balcony and sat on the edge. Minhyuk opened the bottles of soju, poured them into two small glasses. They clinked their glasses together and sipped the drink.

It was summer. The night air was colder than in the day. Hyungwon felt the summer breeze hitting his face. He sighed. He knew his face was slightly pink now from the alcohol. He probably drank a little bit too much. It was fine, the goal was to drink and forget. He glanced over at Minhyuk. Minhyuk too was slightly pink, the smell of alcohol heavy around him. He hiccuped.

"Hyungwon,"

The other hummed at the call of his name. His eyes was glassy and his line of thought was blurred. He couldn't tell if he was feeling hot from the weather or from the soju.

"Do you believe in soulmates?" Minhyuk asked.

Hyungwon gave it a thought. Did he believed in soulmates? Well, if soulmates didn't exist, how would that explained his parents? Or his grandparents? His old math teacher who spoke of her wife in pure affection? He wouldn't say he completely believed in the idea of soulmates. But the thought was there. After all, he had seen a lot of happy endings.

"A little bit, yeah." Hyungwon replied.

"Well I don't." Hyungwon turned his head to look at Minhyuk but Minhyuk was staring ahead, looking at the streetlights illuminating the road under their balcony.

"You don't?" Hyungwon asked.

In all the years they had known each other, Hyungwon would've thought that Minhyuk believed in soulmates. Minhyuk and Hyungwon lived in two vast world; two completely different mindset. Minhyuk used to believe in true love kisses, happy endings and endless love. Hyungwon believed that there was love in the world, just not enough to spare for everyone. He thought that Minhyuk believed in soulmates, seeing how he was all about love and fate and all those magical bullshit.

"I don't." Minhyuk said. "Do you remember my aunt, Min-ok?"

Hyungwon could recall. Aunt Min-ok was a weird lady. She had appeared out of nowhere a few years back. Hyungwon only remembered her vaguely as Minhyuk's aunt. "Yeah, I remember her."

"How old do you think she is?"

Hyungwon's parents were already in their late-40s. Minhyuk's parents were the same age as his. Considering that Aunt Min-ok looked way younger than Minhyuk's mother when Hyungwon last saw her a few years ago, "In her 30s, maybe?"

Minhyuk laughed. It wasn't a happy sound. Just sad and pitiful. "30 might be her age based on how she looks. But 60 would be her age legally."

Hyungwon's eyes widen. "She's-"

"60, yes." Minhyuk cut him short. "It's sad isn't it? She still looks young but then everyone around her, everyone she knows is either married, happy, aging or is no longer walking the face of the earth."

Hyungwon stayed silent. "Aunt Min-ok told me this. She has a few friends from childhood. Two of them turn out to be soulmates. They're married now and they have grandkids. They're old and they're just waiting for death to come for them."

"Isn't it just sad Hyungwon? She has to watch as her longtime friends grow old and die together of old age while she sits there, not aging even one day. She starts losing people around her and she has to watch it all. All because of this stupid soulmate thing where she doesn't age until she meets her soulmate. Why can't she just age like normal? And then finally die of old age so she doesn't need to watch her friends die before her. Why must she stay lonely all her life Hyungwon?"

There was nothing to be said. There was nothing that _could_ be said. Hyungwon didn't have the answer to that. The universe was just weird like that. Why did the idea of soulmates exist? Why must one age together with someone else? Why must Aunt Min-ok stay alone and feel lonely for the rest of her life?

"Are you angry that she hasn't find her soulmate yet?" Hyungwon asked instead.

"No," Minhyuk answered. Why would he be angry about someone he never knew about? "I'm just sad that she's going to get lonely all by herself."

"But isn't it a good thing?" Hyungwon voiced out. This time, Minhyuk turned to look at him.

"What do you mean?"

"She hasn't find her soulmate, she hasn't age yet. That means she gets to do the things she wants to do as much as she can. She doesn't need to worry about aching knees or hair whites. She can just carry on with her life, as if she is still in her 30s, 20s maybe." Hyungwon explained. "Isn't that a good thing?"

Minyuk hummed softly under his breath. He gave it a thought. Maybe Hyungwon was right. At least Aunt Min-ok didn't have to worry about hair whites and aching knees.

"Maybe," Minhyuk answered. "I still hate the idea of soulmates though." he said. "It's stupid. I don't want to grow old with someone I barely know."

Hyungwon chuckled. An idea passed through his mind. "Then let's not ever find our soulmates."

"Our?"

Hyungwon nodded. "Yeah. Your soulmate and my soulmate, let's never find them. And then we can live older together except, well, we won't actually grow old. At least we know each other well."

Minhyuk laughed. "Okay. Let's never find our soulmates and live together forever!"

The stars shone in the night sky. They stared ahead, nothing to be seen. The buzz from the alcohol had almost disappeared. The road was empty, no cars, no people. The streetlights was still there illuminating nothing. They sat out at their balcony, shoulders against shoulders. The clouds were covering the moon. The night was quiet. The universe had other plans.

 

 

Hyungwon's eyes fluttered open from the sunlight streaming through his windows. He cursed silently under his breath when he realized he forgot to leave his curtains close last night. He sighed, arms and legs spread wide on his bed.

It was a Saturday. A bright, beautiful Saturday morning where Hyungwon didn't have any plans and yet, he was awake way before noon. It was only 10 in the morning. He could have slept an hour longer if he didn't get woken up by the light. Hyungwon stared up at his ceiling. It was useless getting huffy over it. He was awake either way and sleep wouldn't come to him again. Guessed he had to wake up and actually do stuff.

Hyungwon got up from his bed, stretching out his sore limbs before heading out of his room. The apartment was quiet. The lights weren't on like it usually was at this time on Saturday morning, the only light was coming from outside. His eyes roamed around the area.

"Minhyuk?" Hyungwon called out.

Minhyuk was usually awake at this time. He was persistent about a proper sleeping schedule, always scolding Hyungwon whenever the latter so much as slept past noon. Hyungwon couldn't remember a Saturday morning where Minhyuk wasn't watching cartoons on their couch with a bowl of cereal and milk. Living with Minhyuk had made Hyungwon adapted to his lifestyle. He learnt to live the best of it.

"Minhyuk?" Hyungwon called out again as he opened the door to Minhyuk's bedroom.

Odd. Minhyuk wasn't inside his room. It was still and quiet. Hyungwon felt a shiver run down his spine. He shrugged off the negative thoughts that was getting louder in his head as he wandered towards the kitchen. Minhyuk wasn't in the kitchen either and worry started consuming Hyungwon until he noticed the A4 paper stuck onto the fridge.

He breathed out a sigh of relief when Minhyuk had left a note saying he was out for a run and he would go shop for their groceries. A little sound of annoyance escaped his lips when he realized Minhyuk had waste a piece of A4 paper only to write on not more than a quarter of it.

Sticking back the note onto the fridge, Hyungwon headed over to the bathroom to wash up. His stomach was grumbling loudly. He would feed on anything in the kitchen after he was done showering.

Hyungwon grabbed his towel from his bedroom and entered the bathroom. He hang his towel on the rack before standing in front of the mirror. Hyungwon took his toothbrush and squeezed out a suitable amount of paste. He proceeded to brush his teeth, staring at himself through the mirror.

There was nothing interesting about looking at himself. He could see a rough stubble under his chin. He should shave it later. Or maybe he wouldn't. Not like anybody truly care. His eyes trailed upwards. There were dark bags under his eyes. It got a lot worse than the last time he checked. Hyungwon shrugged it off and stared at his hair. The dark tresses were getting longer, he should cut his fringe.

Hyungwon accidentally gagged on his toothbrush. He coughed harshly, removing the toothbrush from his mouth. He spat out the remaining paste and gargled water in his mouth before spitting that out. He raised his head and stared at his reflection, specifically his hair. Hyungwon stared at it long and hard. With a nervous exhale, he carefully raised up his hand.

There was a slight tremble in his movement. He was scared, terrified even as he came in contact with his brown locks. Hyungwon gulped and tugged at the few strands sticking out from the left side. He stared at it, his fingers smoothing out the few strands. Hyungwon's breath hitched.

He ran out of the bathroom towards his room. In the haste, he almost forgot his towel. It was a good thing he had his sweatpants on. Hyungwon scrambled to take his phone from his bedside table. He opened the front side camera and stared at himself. He held out the same few strands of hair from before. There was no mistaking it. He took a few pictures just for confirmation. It was still there.

His hair was turning _white_.

But how? It was almost impossible. Hyungwon hadn't seen anyone new for the past few years. And if he was starting to have white hair that meant he had met his soulmate for quite some time now. Which was impossible. He knew a lot of people from college but even then not all of them had stuck around. Not to the point where he would start to age again. Unless... _unless_.

Hyungwon could hear the front door to the apartment clicking open.

"Hyungwon, I'm home! Are you still sleeping?"

Unless Minhyuk was his soulmate.

Hyungwon paled. But Minhyuk hated the idea of soulmates. If he knew, if Minhyuk _knew_ what would happen to them? There was a knock on his door.

"Hyungwon, are you still sleeping?" The doorknob turned.

His eyes widen. "Don't open the door!"

Minhyuk let go of the doorknob. "Um, okay?"

"I'm- I'm not decent!" Hyungwon lied.

Minhyuk snorted. "Oh come on Hyungwon, we've seen each other naked before." He turned the doorknob again.

"No! I really mean it, I'm not decent right now."

There was a pause.

"Oh, _oh_." Minhyuk replied. He loosened his grip on the doorknob and then let it go. "You can continue, I guess. Sorry for bothering. Have fun jerking off!"

Hyungwon breathed out a sigh of relief when the sounds of Minhyuk's footsteps got further away and the other side was silent. He raised his phone to look at himself again. Hyungwon sighed in frustration. Now he had to deal with this soulmate thing. The few strands of white hair acting as an eyesore to him. He had to figure out on how to hide this from Minhyuk. The fact that Minhyuk was his possible soulmate didn't help. Hyungwon groaned when he remembered the finer details.

Minhyuk thought he was masturbating. He supposed he had to deal with that too. Life just got more interesting for Chae Hyungwon.

 

 

Hyungwon came out of his room wrapped up in his black hoodie. He had the hood cover up his hair and the universe mistake, as he would like to call it. He plopped himself down on the couch, a few feet away from Minhyuk. Minhyuk looked up from his bowl of cereal and frowned at Hyungwon.

"Why are you all bundled up?" Minhyuk asked.

"It's cold." Hyungwon answered. He didn't look at Minhyuk, just staring ahead at the television screen.

"It's the middle of summer?"

Hyungwon could feel sweat trickled down his neck. "It's really cold."

Minhyuk arched his eyebrow at this. "Okay?" he said. He shifted his attention back to the television. "Did you watch some good porn that your brain malfunctioned?"

Hyungwon's face flared up. He was grateful that Minhyuk was more concentrated on the drama airing on their television. He couldn't see that Hyungwon's face was very pink and the sweat on his forehead wasn't helping it either.

"Maybe," Hyungwon answered softly. Minhyuk didn't hear him or perhaps he had nothing to say.

Truth be told, Hyungwon hadn't watch porn in so long. He couldn't remember the last time he watched porn. Maybe during his college years when he was stressed and lonely and Minhyuk wasn't home, out for some frat parties. But he had graduated college now. A young male working for some big company. He never bothered to jerk off.

"Send me the link." Minhyuk said.

Hyungwon contemplated on seriously throwing himself off the apartment building when his phone rang once. He took it out from his jeans pocket and replied the text.

"I'm going out." Hyungwon said, standing up and walking over to the front door.

"Where to?" Minhyuk asked. His eyes was still focused on the screen.

"Somewhere." Minhyuk raised his head to look at Hyungwon. He looked at Hyungwon suspiciously. Hyungwon merely shrugged his shoulders. "Some place important. I will probably get home late. Don't wait up."

Hyungwon wore his black converse, opened the door and left the house.

 

 

"Changkyun, I need help." Hyungwon said as soon as Changkyun opened the door to his apartment.

Changkyun looked at him, not the slightest amused. He nodded his head. "Yup. Knew it. You never look for me unless you need something hyung."

Hyungwon walked into the apartment when Changkyun opened the door further. He peeled off his black converse and walked to the living room with his sock-clad feet. The house was quiet. Changkyun lived alone so that was probably the reason why.

"So? What do you want me to help you with?" Changkyun asked. He sat himself down on his small couch.

"I need you to help me dye my hair."

"What?" Changkyun looked at him confused.

Hyungwon sighed. He really didn't want anyone else to know about his soulmate situation. But if Changkyun was really going to help him dye his hair, he would surely find out sooner or later. Hyungwon took a deep breath before removing the hood from his hoodie. Changkyun looked at him confused. His eyes roamed Hyungwon's figure until it fell upon his hair.

"You found your soulmate!" Changkyun exclaimed excitedly when he saw the few strands of white. He looked more excited that Hyungwon had found his soulmate than Hyungwon did.

"Yeah," Hyungwon replied dryly.

Changkyun didn't seem to notice the change in his demeanour. "Who?" he asked. At least someone was happy that Hyungwon found his soulmate.

Hyungwon inhaled deeply. "Minhyuk."

Changkyun's face dimmed. _"Oh."_

Hyungwon chuckled humourlessly. He guessed everyone knew about Minhyuk's hatred towards soulmates. It was inevitable.

"Are you sure?" Changkyun asked.

"It couldn't be more obvious."

Changkyun sighed. "So you want me to dye your hair to hide it?"

Hyungwon's lips pulled into a tight smile. "Yeah."

Changkyun couldn't help but look at Hyungwon pitifully. It was nice to have your childhood best friend as your soulmate. But it must be horrible to think about how much your soulmate hated the idea of soulmate, the idea of you, even before they knew they were each other's soulmates. Hyungwon must have felt conflicted.

"I'm sorry, hyung." Changkyun said. He didn't know why he was apologizing but he could only understand how much pain Hyungwon must be going through.

"It's not your fault." Hyungwon sighed out.

"Come on, I'll help you dye your hair. You can choose any colour you want. I'm sure I have everything." Changkyun said.

He stood up and walked over to his bathroom. Hyungwon followed him wordlessly. The bathroom was spacious. It was a known fact that almost all of their friends had went over to Changkyun's place if they wanted to dye their hair. It was free and most importantly, they trusted Changkyun. It was a safe place to dye their hair.

Changkyun opened up the small cabinet under the sink. In there was stacks of boxes with hair dye in various different colours. Hyungwon noticed a few of the colours Minhyuk had tried before. But it was still a lot. Hyungwon's eyes landed upon Changkyun's black hair and then back at the rainbow dyes.

"Hey Changkyun," Hyungwon called out. The other hummed in acknowledgement, busy fixing the newspaper on the floor so the bathroom wouldn't get messy. "Your mother owned a hair saloon, you used to work there for fun and you have a large collection of hair dye with different colours but I have never seen your hair in anything other than brown or black."

"I had blonde hair before."

"But never something wild. Like red or blue maybe?" Hyungwon asked, looking over the boxes of hair dye.

Changkyun snorted. He took out all of the boxes and laid it out in front of Hyungwon. "I like helping people dye their hair but that doesn't mean I want to." he said. "Pick a colour hyung."

Hyungwon looked at the boxes of hair dye in front of him. There was a lot of colour, from the natural ones like black, brown and blonde to the more eccentric ones. Hyungwon had tried blonde before. With Minhyuk, of course the other male had practically trapped him into dyeing his hair blonde. It was fun while it lasted and Hyungwon thought he would never dye his hair ever again. But here he was now.

He needed to choose carefully. Blonde might be a fun choice but if his hair was to really turn white then he should pick something that wouldn't make it obvious when the colour faded away. His eyes roamed over the eccentric colours. Maybe he should try something wild. His eyes stopped at a box of pink hair dye. He picked it up.

"Fun choice." Changkyun commented behind him. He took the small box from Hyungwon's hand.

"You sure about this?" He asked.

Hyungwon nodded his head firmly. He had never been so sure. If Minhyuk hated the idea of soulmates and if he still thought he never met his soulmate before then it should stay that way. It was okay if Hyungwon was heartbroken. As long as Minhyuk didn't hate him and they could stay friends.

Changkyun sighed. "Alright. Sit down on that chair, I need to bleach your hair first."

Hyungwon obediently follow. He had only dye his hair twice. And that was years ago when he dyed his hair blonde before dyeing it back to its natural colour. He sat on the chair Changkyun placed in front of the mirror. He stared at his reflection one last time, looking at the strands of white hair. Changkyun wrapped a worn cloth over his body and he closed his eyes.

 

 

"Will you ever tell him?" Changkyun asked him.

They were standing in front of Changkyun's doorway. The sun was setting in the background. Dyeing his hair had took a lot of time and Hyungwon was a little bit sorry that he had took up Changkyun's day. The younger had reassured him that it was fine but Hyungwon still felt guilty.

"Maybe not." Hyungwon answered.

"So you're gonna keep dyeing your hair and running away?"

"Maybe." Hyungwon replied. "It's better that way. I could kill him or myself to stop the aging process. But that would be a crime act and too cruel for any of us."

Changkyun sighed. "I guess I can't really help you with it."

He stepped forward and took Hyungwon by surprise when he hugged Hyungwon. Hyungwon hugged him back. He rested his head on top of Changkyun's head. Changkyun reminded him a lot of his younger brother back home. He guessed that must be why they were so close. Changkyun was like a brother to him.

"I'm sorry you have to go through all this." He said, voice muffled by Hyungwon's hoodie. "I love Minhyuk hyung, but it's unfair for you."

Hyungwon petted his hair. "It's okay Kyun. I'm fine." He's not, actually. But it was nice to know he had people who cared for him.

"I'll be here whenever you need help and to support you hyung," Changkyun said as he pulled back from the hug. "The colour looks nice on you though."

Hyungwon smiled. He unconsciously twirled a strand of his newly dyed pink hair. He saw himself in the mirror and he thought he did looked good. The colour suited him. Surprisingly.

"Yeah, it looks nice. Thanks Changkyun." Hyungwon said. "I have to go. Thank you, again, Changkyun."

Changkyun watched as Hyungwon opened the door and left his apartment. A sad smile grazed his face. The universe sure had a weird way on having fun. He wished the best for Hyungwon, whispering a soft 'you're welcome' even though Hyungwon was no longer around.

 

 

"I'm home!" Minhyuk yelled out from the front door.

After Hyungwon had left earlier today, he decided to go out as well. It was boring staying indoors with no one around. He dragged a friend with him as he went shopping and came back home with a lot of bags in his hand.

When he entered the living room, he was surprised to see someone with soft pink hair sitting on his couch and watching the news channel. It wasn't the first time Hyungwon had brought home someone. But it had been a long time and Hyungwon usually told him beforehand. He let the shopping bags dropped to the floor.

"Who the fuck are you?" Minhyuk asked, mindless of the possible guest in his house.

"Oh hey Minhyuk," Hyungwon replied nonchalantly as he glanced briefly at Minhyuk before turning his attention back at the television.

Minhyuk blinked. Once. Twice. "You dyed your hair pink?" He screeched and Hyungwon winced.

"Minhyuk, there's no need to be so loud-"

"You dyed your hair pink."

"Yes, I dyed-"

"You dyed your hair _pink!"_

Hyungwon sighed. "Yes. I did."

"Why?"

Hyungwon shrugged his shoulders. "Just for fun."

"Hyungwon you never do something 'just for fun'." Minhyuk said as he walked over to the couch and sat himself down beside Hyungwon. "There's always a reason why you do certain things. Surely, there's a reason why you suddenly decided to dye your hair pink over a day."

"There's really no reason. I thought of dyeing my hair, and that was it." Hyungwon replied.

Minhyuk stared at the top of his hair. It was unnatural to see Hyungwon dyeing his hair. Usually it was Minhyuk who dyed his hair a wild colour. Yet today he came home to Hyungwon with pink hair.

"Can I touch it?" Minhyuk asked hesitantly.

Hyungwon snorted. Minhyuk was asking to touch his hair like it was some kind of animal. "Go ahead."

Slowly, Minhyuk raised his hand. He rested his hand on Hyungwon's head, just placing his hand there. He ruffled Hyungwon's hair, in which Hyungwon huffed at him. Minhyuk chuckled. He smoothen out the hair, tangling his fingers with Hyungwon's pink locks.

"Does it look good?" Hyungwon asked.

"It looks... nice." Minhyuk settled for the word nice. He can't really describe what he felt about it. "It looks nice. Really nice. It looks really pretty." He locked eyes with Hyungwon. "You look really pretty."

Hyungwon blushed brightly. Not used to the compliment. "Thank you," he said.

Minhyuk smiled as he raked his fingers through Hyungwon's hair. "I still can't believe you dyed your hair out of impulse. The sextape must be really good for your brain to have such a meltdown. You should really send me the link Hyungwon." He said and Hyungwon groaned in frustration.

 

 

"Can you stop staring at my hair?" Hyungwon asked when they were out for dinner.

Minhyuk's eyes glanced at Hyungwon's hair. He looked down at his plate of rice and pick up his spoon. "I can't." He said. "It feels weird."

"It's my hair Minhyuk. I only dye it pink. It's not alien. Stop talking like my hair is a separate entity from me." Hyungwon retorted. He was starting to feel annoyed. Minhyuk had been referring to his hair like some kind of weird thing not belonging to Hyungwon.

Minhyuk kept silent. He glanced at Hyungwon and his hair one last time before digging into his dinner. The only sounds that could be heard was the noisy clanging of their utensils against each other and the other customers busy chatters in the shop. The silence between them was short lived before Minhyuk spoke again.

"But it's weird." Minhyuk said, looking up at Hyungwon. Hyungwon leveled his stare. "You don't do impulses. Your actions are always well planned, well calculated. You'll ask different people for their opinions before you decide on something. You didn't even ask me, your best friend or as someone who dyes his hair frequently for my opinion. It took me a whole lot to trap you into dyeing your blonde before. And suddenly, _suddenly!_ You're here in front of me with soft pink hair."

"Did something happen Hyungwon?"

Hyungwon's breathed hitched. Yes, something happened. Today he woke up and thought he would go by his day like he normally did. But then he was brushing his teeth when he realized a few strands of his hair had turned white. It took him awhile to figure out what happened, what was going on, how it happened. The answer was right in front of him. In the form of his childhood best friend who lived with him in the same apartment.

"You know you can tell me anything. I'm your friend."

Except that childhood best friend hated the mere idea of soulmates. Hyungwon couldn't ruin that for them. Couldn't ruin that for himself. It hurt but it was the least he could do. As long as Minhyuk stayed with him. Even if he had to hide the painful truth.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it and eat your food."

 

 

It wasn't until Monday morning that Hyungwon realized that dyeing his hair probably wasn't the brightest idea. Especially if his hair was an unnatural pink. Hyungwon wasn't in college anymore where he could do as he pleased and the people around him would either care or simply bat an eye away. If he had dye his hair pink during college then maybe he would get a positive response. Maybe a compliment from his classmates or some random student passing by. It was a nice thought.

But he wasn't a college student anymore. He graduated, maybe almost a year ago. He was working now. In a small but popular legal firm in the city where he had been doing his internship.

Hyungwon worked at a legal firm. Which meant he was required to dress up formally in case a client came in. Which meant he was usually seen wearing buttoned up shirts and tie, sometimes a well-crisp full suit and made up hair. Which meant that it would properly be inappropriate for him to show up with made up pink hair and a neat suit.

What was he going to say to his co-workers? Who happened to be people in their early-40s with a conservative mindset and visibly disliking him for being the younger ones there.

_Oh hey, this is still Hyungwon if you couldn't tell. As you could see I dyed my hair pink. But everything's okay! Let us all pretend nothing happen as I walk around the office with my obnoxiously, eye-catching pink hair that I did out of impulse to hide the fact that my childhood best friend is my soulmate._

Hyungwon groaned. He was gonna get fired for this. And what did it cost?

_Minhyuk's bright smile whenever he looks at you, thinking that you're his lovable Wonnie, his best friend and not his dreaded soulmate._

Hyungwon inhaled sharply. His conscience was being awfully loud this morning. He decided it wouldn't be a good day and immediately hated today. He put on his work clothes - a simple white buttoned-up, a dark brown vest and a matching suit and pants. For comedic purposes, Hyungwon wore a pale pink tie. If he was getting fired then it was better to do it in style.

He had drove to the office instead of taking the public transport. People were going to stare anyway when he reached the office's building, he rather they didn't stare at him now. Minhyuk had left earlier than him, something about a meeting first thing in the morning. He had took the public transport instead of riding with Hyungwon like usual. That was the only good sign he got all morning from the universe; not seeing his soulmate slash childhood best friend slash housemate so early in the morning.

Hyungwon needed to figure out which one would be appropriate to call Minhyuk.

He parked his car at the reserved lot in the basement. Hyungwon didn't think about it much when he went to the ground floor coffee shop and bought a hot cup of coffee for himself. Just some stares from workers who came in for work. Probably a lot of stares from everyone. The barista who served him had gave his hair a stare before complimenting the new hair colour. He gave the barista a forced smile.

The real issue was when he entered the elevator to reach his office. His office was on the 14th floor and he would need to take the elevator to get there. Everyone in the elevator had looked at him weirdly, even distancing themselves from him like he was an alien from another planet.

But Hyungwon didn't bother to acknowledge them. His eyes stared at the screen in the elevator. The numbers going up and up and up until the dreaded number 14 was in sight. The elevator let out a little chime as the doors opened up. Hyungwon took a deep breath and exited the elevator.

He hesitated in front of his office door. If he dragged out that few minutes then maybe Minhyuk wasn't his soulmate; maybe he didn't need to dye his hair pink; maybe he could keep his job. But the universe hated him. He knew there was no change in fate. With another deep breath, his hand reached up to the doorknob and the door opened without Hyungwon moving an inch.

Hyungwon thought that it was bold of him to turn up to his office with pink hair. But in front of him stood a younger male with white hair and just the little smudge of eyeliner. Hyungwon thought that he wouldn't be the only one so out of place now.

"Oh Hyungwon hyung! Hi!" His co-worker greeted him cheerfully.

Lee Jooheon was the new intern from their IT department who showed up to work wearing the least formal attire Hyungwon had seen for someone that was supposed to work in a legal firm. Granted, Jooheon was in their IT Department's room most of the time and was merely the intern but Hyungwon was still surprised to see someone wearing a bright coloured oversized hoodie amongst the suits and ties.

"Hey, nice colour!" Jooheon said, noting his pink hair.

They weren't really close, just two co-workers working in different departments but Hyungwon had made small talk with Jooheon whenever they saw each other at the pantry room. Being the small group (duo) of younger ones in an office of middle-aged man (two male in their 20s against fifteen others in their 40s), they would want to stick together if problems arised.

"I dyed my hair too. What do you think, hyung?" Jooheon asked.

"It's nice." Hyungwon commented. He really didn't know what to say.

"Your hair's pretty rad too. You look good in pink." Jooheon replied. "It's a surprise to see you so different hyung. Did something happen?"

Did something happen? Huh, did _something_ happen. But Hyungwon wasn't one to spill his life story to a co-worker he barely talked with. It was better that nobody else knew about it. The lesser, the better.

"Just, a change of air I guess?" Hyungwon said.

Jooheom seemed to buy it as he nodded his head. "Cool then. l'm gonna buy a quick breakfast for myself. See you around hyung!" He said and jogged away.

Hyungwon entered his office, noting the quiet stares from his co-workers. He silently made his way to his cubicle and sat down. Hyungwon didn't look up, didn't squeak a word and pretended he was invincible as he sipped on the hot Americano he bought just now. If he kept this up then maybe he would walked pass it. He smiled giddily. Maybe this wasn't so hard.

His smiled dimmed when his intercom buzzed and a voice from the other side snapped him out from his daydream.

"Chae Hyungwon? Can you report to my office? Right now."

 

 

Hyungwon shifted uncomfortably on the leather seat. His eyes roamed everywhere but the eyes of his HR executive. It felt weird sitting in this office without the usual feeling of amazement at seeing how comfortable a HR executive's room was. He had been here a few times, but not in this type of situation. He felt small here, anxiety rousing in him. The reason he was called in was so obvious and yet Hyungwon refused to acknowledge it.

His HR executive cleared his throat. Hyungwon glanced at the table, a simple nameplate with the words Son Hyunwoo engraved on it. "Good day, Hyungwon."

He mumbled a good day back, voice too soft and almost unheard. But Hyunwoo didn't say anything and nodded his head at Hyungwon. "I can't help but notice a certain difference in you."

Hyungwon gulped. He would have made a joke out of that but maybe he was too scared. His HR executive's leveled stare and broad shoulders didn't help.

"You couldn't have pick, a more..." Hyunwoo coughed. "Natural colour?"

Hyungwon's head hung down in shame. He didn't dare to answer.

"I would have let you off if it was the usual brown or black, maybe a blonde hair would have let you off the hook." Hyunwoo said. "But... pink? That's unusual."

Hyunwoo sighed. "I get that you're young and maybe you're a little bit influenced by Jooheon from IT but Jooheon works in the office whereas you have to sometimes meet the clients. Showing up with pink hair isn't exactly an ideal first impression for our firm."

Hyungwon's lips pursed. He could feel Hyunwoo staring at the crown of his head. Hyunwoo folded his arm on the table and leaned back against his chair. He was still staring at Hyungwon, probably calculating his next move.

"You've always been top in your work. Come in before office hours, diligent paperworks and even praises from our clients. There hasn't been a scar in your work reputation. The clean look and clean work. You've always been more quiet and subdued. You're a hardworker in our firm, Hyungwon."

Hyunwoo spoke slow with pauses in between. Like he was talking to a child, gently scolding him. Asking him to carefully study his words and understand them. "Tell me Hyungwon. What happened to you that you took a drastic change in your hair colour?" He paused. "And why pink exactly?"

There was no answer to that. Even if there was, he couldn't hand the answers to Hyunwoo. He knew why he changed his hair colour, why he ended up being in the HR executive's office. He knew he should have thought better, maybe talk it out. But he also knew that he was scared. Scared of the unknown, scared of the known, scared of losing Minhyuk.

He didn't know why pink though. Why pink? Hyungwon just took the box of hair dye from Changkyun's cabinet out of impulse. He didn't give much thought about it.

"Tell me Hyungwon, is it financial problems?"

A pause. Hyungwon shook his head.

"Family problems?"

Hyungwon shook his head.

"Soulmate problems?"

Hyungwon's head shot up. He looked at Hyunwoo dumbfounded. Hyunwoo didn't even ask if he had relationship problems, just went ahead to ask if he had soulmate problems after two tries. There was something unnerving about that.

Hyunwoo smiled, gentle and warm. He looked at Hyungwon with eyes that had stories to tell and pain embedded to it.

But Hyungwon doubted Hyunwoo would ever tell him.

"Understandable. A soulmate situation could get tricky." Hyunwoo said.

"So, am I getting fired?" Hyungwon asked. Finally having the little courage to let out his voice.

"Maybe," Hyungwon tensed. Hyunwoo chuckled. "Relax. There's still things to discuss with the higher-ups. You'll maybe get a suspension or a dismissal. Let's see what they think about it. For now, you're not allowed to meet up with clients, only working from the office. You may take your leave."

Hyungwon sighed out in relief. He thanked Hyunwoo and stood up to leave the office when Hyunwoo stopped him.

"Oh, and Hyungwon? Try to talk to your soulmate if needed. You're a gem in this office, we can't lose you over a heartbreak." Hyunwoo said to him. Hyungwon smiled in return, nodding his head politely and shutting the door softly behind him.

 

 

"Well hello there, cherry blossom." Hoseok greeted him when they meet up for their usual lunch date.

Hyungwon would have lunch with Minhyuk if they didn't already see each other every waking minute. He was fine with Hoseok as his lunch company. And besides, the elder didn't work far from him. Just a few blocks down his own office building that they get to meet up and have lunch at different restaurants in the area.

"Can you just, stop staring at my hair?" Hyungwon said to him, pulling the chair opposite of Hoseok to sit down.

"Relax, I was just about to compliment on how good the hair colour looks on you." Hoseok replied.

"Yeah, well _thanks_. Enough people had told me that." Hyungwon retorted.

Hoseok smirked. "Getting prideful, are we?"

But Hyungwon didn't reply, eyes skimming through the menu. They ordered their meals when the waitress came over and waited for the food to be ready. The restaurant today was a simple one that sold everyday Korean cuisine. He had picked the restaurant and Hoseok had tagged along.

The restaurant was jam-packed. It was expected really since it was the lunch hour. Hyungwon just hope the food won't come in too late. His eyes fell upon Hoseok, who had been caught staring at his pink hair again. Hoseok smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry, it's just really distracting." Hyungwon snorted, mostly annoyed. "Minhyuk told me over a call earlier but I just, wasn't prepare for the real thing I guess? It looks really pretty. But why though? Minhyuk said you didn't want to tell him why."

"Because there is no reason why."

Hoseok frowned. "That can't be it. Everything has a reason why. Why did you dye your hair pink? Did something happen?"

Hyungwon's eyebrows twitched. "Nothing happened."

"Come on Won, you can always tell me. I'm your friend, right?"

"Nothing happened, alright?" Hyungwon snapped, startling Hoseok. "I just woke up one day and wanted to dye my hair pink."

Hoseok looked at him, surprised but nodded his head still. "Okay."

Hyungwon sighed, rubbing his face together. "I'm sorry hyung." He said. "It's just been a _long_ weekend with my pink hair and me almost losing my job. I'm sorry I snapped at you. I didn't mean to. I'm just really stressed."

Hoseok smiled. He held Hyungwon's hand gently, removing it from his face. "It's okay Hyungwon. I'm sorry too. But I guess I just really wanted to know why? You never do impulses Hyungwon. It's a shocker to see you in pink hair."

Hyungwon shook his head. "There's no reason. Never have been. I only wanted to try something new." He said. "Can we please drop the subject now? My hair's already pink and there's no changing it unless I feel like doing so."

"Okay," Hoseok mumbled defeatedly, at the same time their food came. They ate silently, inserting a few casual conversations here and there. Hyungwon only feeding Hoseok with half lies.

 

 

Hyungwon thought that the pink hair would be the end of it. He thought the obnoxiously pink hair of his would be the end of his aging process and soulmate drama. But of course, he had been wrong. The universe hated him. The universe hated him, so, so much. And Hyungwon hated the universe too. It was a mutual feeling. The only relationship that Hyungwon approved of in his life.

He stood in front of the mirror a week later, staring at his reflection. The little red bump on his cheek was not a mistake. Hyungwon stared at it long and hard. He had only heard about it, saw it on his parent's face before. But this was his first time to have a pimple.

Hyungwon couldn't stop staring at it. It felt slightly itchy. He raised up his hand to touch the newly formed pimple. His index finger almost coming in contact with the red dot when Minhyuk violently knocked on the bathroom door. Hyungwon cursed softly as he jumped away.

"Hyungwon? You okay in there? You've been in there for so long. Did you slipped in the shower and banged your head against the walls again?" Minhyuk asked from the other side.

He sounded worried, Hyungwon could tell even through his muffled voice. Hyungwon wondered if that was a natural thing because they had grew up together and basically lived together or was that a soulmate thing? He shook his head out of the thought. He shouldn't be thinking about soulmates and Minhyuk when he was literally trapped in the bathroom with an ugly pimple on his cheek.

"Uh, I'm good." Hyungwon mumbled intelligently.

"You sure?" Minhyuk asked. " Do you want me to come in and help you with anything?"

Hyungwon sighed. "No Minhyuk. Stop trying to find ways to see me naked."

"Come on, we've seen each other naked before!"

"Stop using that as an excuse Lee Minhyuk! We were 5 back then, we know nothing." Hyungwon said, rolling his eyes.

"We're guys Hyungwon, it won't make a difference if we see each other naked. We carry the same junks." Minhyuk retorted.

Hyungwon pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing loudly. Hopefully Minhyuk had heard him. "Please stop." He said. "I'm fine, just leave me be."

"If you say so," Minhyuk replied. "But if you do slip in the shower then don't hesitate to yell for me."

Minhyuk's voice was far away now. Hyungwon guessed he didn't need to answer him. His eyes glanced over the shower head. Hyungwon winced, holding the back of his head. The shower incident wasn't his proudest moment while living in this apartment.

He discarded the shower incident memory from his mind when he looked at the mirror again. It wasn't a big pimple per se. It was still growing so Hyungwon could easily hide it with a little make-up. The problem now was that he didn't have his make-up products with him. His foundation was placed way back on his dresser in his bedroom.

Hyungwon sighed. His eyes squinted hard at the pimple, willing it to go away. Except it wouldn't go away. Not till later on unfortunately. He had to figure out a way to leave the bathroom without Minhyuk discovering his new formed pimple. His eyes roamed around the bathroom for any clues. It was then he remembered Minhyuk always kept an extra set of his foundation and his concealer behind their mirror cabinet for emergencies.

He opened the mirror cabinet, relief washing over him when he recognized the familiar bottle of concealer. He squeezed some into his hand, overly giddy that the concealer was already opened and in use so that he didn't have to explain to Minhyuk why he had opened his emergency concealer.

He applied the concealer onto his pimple, just enough to hide it. It itched a little but Hyungwon knew that simply scratching on it wouldn't help. When he deemed that it was passable, when the concealer had blend in with his skin colour, he left the bathroom and rushed to his room. Minhyuk had been busy watching his usual morning drama that he didn't notice Hyungwon leaving the bathroom.

Hyungwon clicked his door shut behind him and sighed out. He quickly scrambled to get his phone, dialing the number he had almost memorized at this point.

"Hello?"

"Changkyun, I need your help."

Changkyun sighed. "When do you ever not need my help hyung? It's the second time in two weeks. What happened?"

"I have pimples now." Hyungwon freaked out.

"Good for you, I guess?"

"No, not good for me. How do I hide this pimple from Minhyuk?"

"I don't know? Cake in some foundation? I'm not a professional at this 'how to hide your aging process from your soulmate' thing hyung. I don't even have a soulmate yet."

"Right," Hyungwon breathed out. "But I really don't know what to do."

"I'm sure no one would notice if you apply a lot of foundation and concealer. You can wear a mask too if you want." Changkyun reasoned.

Hyungwon sighed. His eyes examined the little red dot on his face. "Yeah, you're right I guess."

The other line was silent.

"Hyung, can I ask you something?"

"Sure Kyun, go ahead." Hyungwon said, still inspecting his pimple. It felt foreign to him.

"Are you sure Minhyuk hyung is your soulmate?"

Hyungwon paused. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. It feels too sudden in my opinion." Changkyun said. "If he really is your soulmate and you've been living together for so long then shouldn't you already be way ahead of your aging process?"

Hyungwon gave it a thought. "I don't think so." He decided. "I'm starting to have hair whites now and that's only possible if I've met my soulmate long enough. Minhyuk's the only person I've known long enough and see frequently for it to happen. Aging doesn't really happen overnight Changkyun."

"Well, I guess, that makes sense?" Changkyun sighed. "You know what, I don't know anything about this soulmate and aging thing so you have to figure out most of the things on your own."

Hyungwon snorted. "Don't worry. I'm already doing that." He said. "Thanks for helping me out so early in the morning Kyun."

"As much as I can, I'll try to help you hyung. You can always call me if you want to re-dye your hair."

"Yeah, that much is appreciated. Thank you again."

They ended the call. Hyungwon looked at his reflection in the mirror. The pink hair and pimple was doing no good to him with that extra eye bags he was carrying. He sighed. He had been doing that a lot lately, mostly in frustration. He twirled his pink hair with his fingers and wondered if Minhyuk really wasn't his soulmate.

Minhyuk hadn't been showing any signs of aging. He could be Minhyuk's soulmate but Minhyuk could end up not being his. It was possible.

There was a soft knock on his door. "Hey Wonnie, wanna go out and get brunch?"

He would worry about that later. For now he needed to feed himself.

 

 

There was a weird kind of air lingering around the café. Hyungwon's eyes roamed around the inside of the café to see how was it different from the other times he had been here. Did they changed the interior? Maybe add a new table? Everything looked the same to Hyungwon. Maybe it was just him.

"What are you getting, Hyungwon?" Minhyuk asked as they settled down on their usual seat in the café.

"The usual would be nice." Hyungwon said.

The waiter came to take their orders, smiling the usual customer service smile. Hyungwon smiled back as he recited his usual order, more out of politeness than anything. Working on a Saturday to serve customers was really hard. Hyungwon had experienced it firsthand in college when he needed the money to help pay rent. It wasn't very pleasant.

The waiter repeated their order with a slightly different accent. Hyungwon guessed he wasn't a local but he couldn't be bother to care. The waiter had a job to do and Hyungwon wasn't one to meddle where he didn't belong.

After the waiter had left, almost simultaneously, Hyungwon and Minhyuk took out their phones. It wasn't that they were anti-social or anything but they saw each other every day. There wasn't much to say towards each other. Minhyuk and Hyungwon preferred the silence between them, letting their surroundings become a background music that accompanied their meal.

Hyungwon tapped away on his phone, liking pictures from his Instagram feed and switching the app to Twitter. He was starting to get bored when the same posts keep popping up on his timeline. He raised his head to look around, wondering if their food would get serve soon or not. There was no signs of the previous waiter or any other waiters walking over to their table. Guessed there was no luck on getting their food anytime soon. The café was busy too.

The café was always there as far as Hyungwon remembered. It was cheap, cozy and the food was delicious. They liked to come here for brunch or for a nice cup of coffee. It was relaxing and Hyungwon guessed the flood of customers today agreed so.

The door to the café was pushed open. Hyungwon's eyes couldn't help but shot up to the sound. An elderly couple came in, hands intertwined and hair grey. But there was a little twinkle in their eyes that shone brightly when they looked at each other and smiled.

Hyungwon looked away. The sight of soulmates was almost sickening to him. And yet, he used to love seeing the happiness glowing from a pair of soulmates. Maybe because he wouldn't get the privilege to be happy with his own soulmate.

His eyes fell upon the couple sitting two tables away from them. He couldn't see much but he noticed the hands on the table, tightly grasping each other. There was a smile on the face of the male that Hyungwon could see. Affection brimming out of his eyes for the one in front of him. Hyungwon couldn't help but notice their streaks of white hair too and the wrinkles slowly forming in the corner of his eyes.

"Here's your food, sorry for the long wait. It's a busy day." Hyungwon snapped out from his trance when the waiter from before came to serve their food.

He shyly glanced at the other male. Little red pimples marking their territory on the waiter's face. The waiter smiled at him, seemingly not noticing that Hyungwon had been staring at his pimples. Minhyuk mumbled a thank you and the waiter left them to enjoy their meal.

Had the café turned into a soulmates hangout spot now? Was everyone just suddenly growing old today? Was the universe trying to tell him something?

Hyungwon scanned around the café, seeing the occasional white hairs and wrinkles. He looked down at his food. He felt bile rising up his throat. Everyone around him was proudly showing off their signs of aging. Happily holding their soulmates close to their side, closer to their hearts. And here Hyungwon was, a thin layer of foundation caking his face and pink hair to hide the guilt.

Yet when he raised his head to look at Minhyuk, he couldn't spot a single strand of white or any little red dots on his face.

 

 

They walked back home on foot. The weather too good to pass off despite the sweat trickling down their necks and sliding down their backs. The area around them was mildly busy. Living in the outskirts of the city had its own perks. The traffic was there but not as busy as in the city. The residential area was friendly and the restaurants nearby helped to feed two young males who barely knew how to cook. It was a great place to live in.

Hyungwon gingerly walked down the road, hands in his pocket. Minhyuk was beside him, a little skip in every step as he hummed a small tune under his breath. Hyungwon had to stop occasionally to let Minhyuk say hi to the elderly shop owners. They didn't personally know them but Minhyuk had always been one to help around the elderly.

Their apartment building was now nearer in sight. Hyungwon sighed happily. He couldn't wait to get back to his room and turn on his air conditioning to full blast. The heat was starting to prickle his skin.

"Should we go home, Hyungwon?" Minhyuk asked.

Hyungwon looked at him, confused. "We are going home?"

Minhyuk chuckled. "Not here, silly. I meant Gwangju. Should we go back home to Gwangju?"

"Oh," Hyungwon mumbled. "If you want to? But don't you think we're kind of busy right now to go home."

They were really busy recently. With Hyungwon trying to not get himself fired with his pink hair by getting a pile of paperworks on his desk and Minhyuk disappearing every other morning for a new different meeting, they were barely at home. They were only around for the short early Saturday before heading off back to their rooms and doing paperworks on each their laptops. They didn't even leave the house unless it was for food. To think about taking a leave for Gwangju was sort of far-fetched.

"I think my schedule is free in the next two weeks? We could take a week leave and drive back to Gwangju."

"A week?" Hyungwon asked.

"Yeah, a week. Mom wants us to go home and see them. She misses us."

"My mom or your mom?" Hyungwon questioned.

Being two friends who had practically grown up together, sharing the same childhood and living just beside each other, the fine line that separated their families from each other was easily blurred. Their families were close and it was almost natural how they called each other's mothers as a simple mom or how they acknowledge their fathers as a simple dad.

It got a little bit confusing at one point. Not knowing the mom Minhyuk was referring to was his mom or Hyungwon's mom and vice versa. Even more so when Hyungwon's mom had took it upon herself to call Minhyuk over anything because Hyungwon sometimes got too busy that he forgot to give her a call. It was convenient but embarrassing when his mother made Minhyuk persuade him to go back home.

"Both." Minhyuk replied. "Your mom called me last week, just after I finish the weekly call with my mom. They're plotting something."

"When are mothers not actually?" Hyungwon sighed.

"So do you want to? It will be the last week of summer."

Hyungwon gave it thought. Gwangju was a beautiful place. Beautiful enough for him to temporarily forget his soulmate situation maybe. "Why not?" Hyungwon answered as they rode the elevator to their apartment unit.

 

 

"So you're going back to Gwangju with Minhyuk hyung?" Changkyun asked on a Tuesday afternoon.

They were at the ground floor coffee shop at Hyungwon's office building. Changkyun had called to hang out with him for lunch before his evening classes. A life of someone still in college. They hadn't met up on the weekend minus the little phone call Saturday morning, Hyungwon busy with his paperworks and Changkyun with his college assignments. They rarely get coffee together on a normal weekday but Hyungwon wouldn't pass up the opportunity especially since Changkyun had personally called.

They didn't go far, deciding to settle down at the coffee shop. Hyungwon would make do with a sandwich anyways. He didn't ate much for lunch.

Hoseok couldn't join him for lunch today due to him being out of town. It was a pity, they could have lunch together with Changkyun. But this was fine too. Hyungwon got to discuss about his soulmate situation and the growing pimple. He had on a lot of foundation today.

"If my leave is getting approved." Hyungwon replied. "Showing up with pink hair and then suddenly asking for a week leave to be approve? I'm one step closer to actually getting fired."

"Do you think it's a wise choice to go back home to Gwangju with Minhyuk hyung?" Changkyun said.

Hyungwon shrugged his shoulders. "Don't really have a choice, do I? We're neighbours, practically grew up together, our parents are close. It will be weird if one shows up without the other especially since we live together. And my mom really wants to see me again. I haven't been back since last year, after I graduated and got this job."

Changkyun twirled his straw around. The ice cubes spinning around the brown liquid and melting further. "The universe really hates you."

Hyungwon couldn't help but let out a laugh. "It sure does."

"Hyungwon hyung!" Hyungwon looked up at the call of his name, a flash of white hair appeared before him.

"Oh, hey Jooheon. What's up?" Hyungwon asked the other male.

Jooheon looked breathless, like he had been running all day. "Sorry to interrupt your, uh, date?" He said, now standing straighter. He glanced over at Changkyun before looking back at Hyungwon.

Hyungwon shook his head. "He's my friend from college." he explained.

"Well, okay, anyways. Hyunwoo hyung ask me to pass you this." Jooheon said, handing a white envelope. Funny, Hyungwon remembered Jooheon working in IT, not as their dispatch. "I gotta go now, bye hyung!"

Jooheon left them, in a flurry of white and energy. Hyungwon looked at him go before turning towards Changkyun. He was still looking at where Jooheon had head to. "Who is he?" Changkyun asked.

"Jooheon from IT. We talk, sometimes." Hyungwon said. Changkyun was still staring. "Having a little crush on someone?"

Changkyun shook his head, turning back to look at Hyungwon. "Too old for that."

Hyungwon snorted. "You're like, what? 22? You look like you're still 18. It's okay to fool around sometimes. Before you meet your soulmate and get older."

Changkyun shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. What's in the envelope?"

Hyungwon finally realized he was holding the white paper. He looked down. The white envelope was almost mocking him in someway. Maybe this was his resignation letter. "My unemployment gift."

"Open it and see."

He really didn't want to. But if he was getting fired then he needed to pack up his things. Hyungwon hold the envelope in his hand. He opened it, taking out the piece. He read through it, wondering what kind of words awaited him.

"My one week leave got approved." Hyungwon said.

"Congrats." Changkyun commented.

Hyungwon frowned. "Why didn't my HR just sent me an email? Why didn't he leave the letter on my desk, a memo or something? Why did he have to rush Jooheon to send it? Did he really have to build up such suspense?"

"Like we said, hyung. The universe hates you. Maybe your HR does too." Changkyun said.

Hyungwon remembered the day he was in his HR's office. His pink hair and Hyunwoo's broad shoulder. The sad and pained look on Hyunwoo's face at the mention of soulmates. The fact that Hyungwon was running away from his, trying to hide away the truth. Maybe his HR did hate him too.

 

 

"Is this the last of your things?" Hyungwon asked, placing the duffel bag into the car trunk.

Minhyuk pursed his lips in thought. He snapped his fingers. "I forgot my air humidifier!" He exclaimed.

Hyungwon groaned. "Minhyuk, we're going back to Gwangju not moving houses. Do you really have to pack everything in your room?"

"It's important okay? Wait here, I'll just rush upstairs real quick and come back." Minhyuk said and ran over to the elevator.

Hyungwon sighed. He sat at the driver's seat of his Honda and stared ahead. He didn't bring much, only his toiletries and clothes. Most of his clothes were still back home in his wardrobe at Gwangju. He was sure he could still wear them. Yet his car trunk was mostly full, filled to the brim with Minhyuk's things.

Minhyuk had insisted on bringing half of the clothes in his closet. He also brought a separate bag of make-up products. Hyungwon had raised an eyebrow at this, Minhyuk had shrugged him off. He said that he wanted to look pretty, even in front of their parents. Hyungwon didn't comment further. Apparently, the Saturday after both their leave got approved, Minhyuk had bought gifts for their families. Something Hyungwon wasn't aware of.

It wasn't Christmas, Hyungwon had told him. It wasn't even anyone's birthday, so why the gift? Minhyuk said there shouldn't be a reason for someone to give gifts to their parents. Their parents had worked hard enough to raise them, now that they were making money on their own, they should repay them. Two bags of skin collagen and two sets of golf clubs laid in the backseat of his Honda.

Hyungwon's fingers tapped on the steering wheel as he waited for Minhyuk to come down their parking basement. He hummed a soft tune under his breath, not bothering to turn on the radio. It was useless really. The radio didn't work underground.

He glanced over his rearview mirror, fixing it slightly. He caught sight of his face, the little bumps that were covered up by heavy foundation. Hyungwon should give a good review of the product. It managed to cover up the reddish hill. People wouldn't even notice that he was growing pimples unless they scanned him up close. It was a good product.

His mind wandered off to the day at the café. The overwhelming number of soulmates almost made him guilty for hiding his own. It was odd for him to suddenly be met with people having met their soulmates. Or perhaps Hyungwon hadn't realized the area was surrounded by soulmates, too busy being oblivious and busy. It was as if the universe wanted to show him the world of soulmates after he had figured out his. Maybe the universe wanted him to see the wonders of soulmates, to see how it felt to grow old with someone you care, to see how it felt like to be loved by someone that was made for you.

Hyungwon shook his head off the thought. He loved Minhyuk but maybe not to that extend. He still hadn't fully accepted the fact that Minhyuk was his soulmate. A part of him still thought the universe was playing tricks, a small mistake. When he woke up maybe he would stop growing pimples or maybe stop seeing strands of white hair falling off onto his pillow every other morning.

But another part of him, the one he tried to suppress so hard was actually happy. Minhyuk was his soulmate. Wasn't that great? His long-time best friend, the huge part of his childhood and life was someone he was meant to be with. It was a great thought.

If only Minhyuk didn't hated the idea of soulmates.

The door to the passenger seat was opened. Minhyuk settled into the seat, his air humidifier on his lap. He turned to look at Hyungwon, a smile on his face. "Let's go?"

 

 

Their mothers were ecstatic when Hyungwon pulled up in front of his old family home. The two women had stood in front of the porch, waiting for Hyungwn to park the car. When Hyungwon walked up the front door, his mother pulled him into a hug and when his mother let him go, Minhyuk's mother pulled him into another hug. The same happened for Minhyuk.

It felt overwhelming but Hyungwon could understand where they were coming from. The last time they had seen each other was during their convocation.

They sat down in their living room, their mothers giving them no chance to pile out their bags or rest from the long journey. They were asked a different question every minute. The usual how was work; had they been eating well; was money tight; were they enjoying adulthood questions was asked. They answered everything patiently before their mothers decided to stop for dinner preparation.

Minhyuk left for his family home with his myriad of things. Hyungwon didn't bother helping, the other saying he didn't need to. He carried his two bags into his room and when he came back downstairs the gifts Minhyuk bought was on the table.

Minhyuk didn't came back until he was called for dinner. Because they had been cooking in Hyungwon's family home, they decided to just have dinner there. Everyone was gathered together. Their parents, them, the only thing missing was his younger brother, Kyungwon who was studying for his degree. But this was sufficient for now. It felt like the usual family gatherings from years back.

"How is Seoul?" Hyungwon's father had asked.

It was a general question, not directed to any of them. Either of them could easily answer it. Hyungwon did.

"It's fine. Still busy as ever. You should come visit us." He said.

"Maybe we should." His father nodded his head. "Have you two found your soulmates yet?"

They were quiet. Hyungwon hoped that Minhyuk would answer first. He really didn't want to continue this particular conversation. Especially since his soulmate was right there, sitting in front of him eating the grilled meat.

Hyungwon coughed. "No, I haven't."

"Me neither."

Their parents arched an eyebrow at this, looking at each other.

"Well, maybe the time hasn't come yet for you to meet your soulmate. You should enjoy your life till then." Minhyuk's father had said.

Dinner passed by like normal, little conversations made here and there. After the dishes was done, Minhyuk had went back home to rest. Hyungwon too had retreated back to his room, tired from the long drive. Their parents didn't say anything. They promised to make plans with their parents tomorrow, after a full rest and a proper sleep.

It wasn't till an hour later when Hyungwon wanted to get a drink that he heard their parents conversation. He didn't mean to eavesdrop but they were being particularly loud.

Hyungwon was more surprised that Minhyuk's parents were still here. Who knew they still had a lot to talk about with each other despite all these years as neighbours. He was awed.

"I thought they would be each other's soulmates." He heard Minhyuk's mother said.

"I thought so too." His own mother replied. "But I guess we were wrong."

"Whoever their soulmate is I'm sure they will be happy with them." Minhyuk's father had reasoned.

"At least they are still friends." His father said.

Hyungwon didn't know if he should have told the truth to them or not. He didn't have the heart to break the news to Minhyuk's parents. They were actually giddy about the idea of soulmates, as far as Hyungwon could remember. A contrast to their own son. Hyungwon decided it was better that the secret remained sealed with tight lips.

He went to bed with a parched throat and a hopeful wish that nothing about being soulmates got leaked and he could still be friends with Minhyuk.

 

 

When they came back to Seoul after a week in Gwangju, it stopped being so humid. The stores started selling Halloween items. Hyungwon thought that it was a little too early for that but he wasn't the one who was in charge of what the mall sold every month. He let it be, appreciating the lack of sweat on his forehead and embracing the season for sweaters.

The leaves started to turn yellow, the day shorter and while he was busy picking out a sweater to match his shirt and tie, he received a call.

"Hello?"

"How are you doing bean?" The other line said.

Hyungwon laughed. The familiar voice, the familiar nickname and the familiar warmth. "I should be asking you that Kihyun. Where have you been? You didn't bother to call."

"I'm busy having fun." Kihyun said and Hyungwon could imagine the grin on his face. "Sorry I haven't been in touch much but I'm in Seoul currently. Do you want to meet up soon?"

"Is lunch today okay with you?" Hyungwon asked. Hoseok was out of town again today so Hyungwon would have had lunch alone if Kihyun didn't bother calling him.

"Sounds good to me." Kihyun replied.

"Do you want me to tell Minhyuk or do you want to call him yourself?"

There was a short pause. "Actually, can it only be the two of us today?"

The question took Hyungwon by surprise. Kihyun was closer to Minhyuk than to him. He would expect Kihyun to have lunch alone with Minhyuk if he didn't want the three of them to meet together. Hyungwon felt like something bad was bound to happen soon.

"If that's what you want then," Hyungwon answered hesitantly.

"Thank you, Hyungwon. I'll text you the place. See you." Kihyun hung up. Hyungwon stared at the black screen. He might need to prepare himself for the worst.

 

 

Kihyun had purple hair when they met at the designated place. If Hyungwon picked out the box of purple dye in Changkyun's shelf then maybe they would be twinning. But he chose pink and he was stuck with that for awhile. The pink was already fading. Maybe he would call Changkyun later to dye his hair another colour.

Kihyun looked at him in amazement. "Well. Isn't your hair a pleasant surprise."

Hyungwon rolled his eyes. "Same goes to you." He replied.

"But I always dye my hair, even back in highschool." Kihyun said.

"I guess you're the bad influence in Minhyuk's life."

Kihyun shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe." He glanced at Hyungwon's pink hair one last time. "I'm not even gonna ask why."

"You don't need to. There's no reason why." Hyungwon retorted. Kihyun snickered.

"No reason why or because you don't want anyone to know the reason why."

Hyungwon didn't answer. The waitress came. She took their orders and then she left. Hyungwon stared at Kihyun. The other looked just like as Hyungwon remembered him. Young and youthful. He didn't age.

"Where have you been?" Hyungwon asked him.

"Different places. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur. Fun cities." Kihyun replied.

"Are you finally gonna stay in one place now?"

Kihyun pursed his lips. "Maybe?" He answered. And then he laughed. "Nah, I'm heading off to Boston in a week."

Hyungwon frowned. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why not settle down soon? Don't you miss home? Why go on this useless travelling."

Kihyun shook his head. "I have no home." He answered, simple. "I have lost my home a long time ago. It's not useless travelling when I'm having fun. I enjoy travelling."

"What happens when you run out of money?"

"I'll finally settle down soon maybe. But I have a lot of spare changes. And my blog is doing good. It's bringing me enough money."

Kihyun had a blog. One he opened on his own, where he posted his travelogs. The beautiful pictures he took while travelling decorated every part of the site. Hyungwon had read his blogs a few times. It had a steady following. A lot of people enjoyed his words and his visuals.

Their food came. They paused their conversation, focusing on the food before them. Hyungwon raised his head when he felt Kihyun's gaze on him. He stared at Kihyun. He tilted his head to the side in confusion.

"Do you want to know something?" Hyungwon nodded his head for Kihyun to carry on. "I used to have a crush on you in middle school."

Hyungwon choked on his food.

"W-what?"

"It's the truth." Kihyun shrugged off, feeding himself a spoonful of rice. "But then I realize you're not really my type. Too lanky." He scrunched up his nose.

Hyungwon stared at his friend in disbelief. Kihyun really had the audacity to tell about his old crush on him and then proceeded to complain about his height. But only Kihyun could do that.

Kihyun looked at him like he was calculating his next move.

"You've found your soulmate, right Hyungwon?"

"No. I haven't. What are you talking about?" Hyungwon answered a little bit too quickly.

Kihyun snorted. "I'm not stupid Chae. I know it's Minhyuk. I've probably known you two were soulmates before you two even realized it." He said. "But you're hiding it from him, right? Because Minhyuk hates the idea of soulmate."

Hyungwon stopped chewing on his rice. He looked down on his plate. He felt like throwing up.

"You're right Hyungwon. I am a bad influence on Minhyuk. I think I fuel the hate in Minhyuk. It's probably my fault he hates the idea of soulmates." Kihyun breathed out. "I'm not trying to back myself up but I think Minhyuk misunderstands what my past means to me."

"Maybe my dad was a psychopath who wanted nothing but to stay immortal. Maybe he killed my mom in front of my eyes. Maybe I hate him, heck I actually hate him a lot. Maybe the idea of soulmates scares me but if you're thinking that I'm running away from my soulmate then you're wrong."

"I don't even know who my soulmate is. But if the universe thinks it's time we meet then we will meet. There's no real rush to it. I told you guys about my childhood wasn't because I wanted you guys to hate the idea of soulmates. It was because I trusted you guys and wanted the both of you to know. Yeah, Minhyuk hates the idea of soulmates because they are people out there like my dad but there's also a lot of happy stories between soulmates. What happened to me shouldn't be the cause of you denying Minhyuk as your soulmate."

"I'm sorry." Kihyun said. "This wouldn't happen if-"

"It's not your fault." Hyungwon cut him off. Why was he getting apologies from people who didn't owe him any? "Minhyuk hating on the idea of soulmates isn't your fault so stop putting the blame on yourself. I'm sorry for what happened to you but the reason of Minhyuk's hate is on himself, it's his choice to hate."

Hyungwon's words put off any types of arguments. They continued eating but the food was left unfinished. Hyungwon had to go back to his office. Kihyun paid for their meal and they walked out the restaurant. He turned towards Hyungwon, giving him a sad smile.

"I'm sorry for what you're going through."

Hyungwon put on a tight smile. "It's nothing I couldn't handle."

"If I can change Minhyuk's mind-"

Hyungwon chuckled dryly. "He's a hard one to crack."

"It's not like it's the first time."

"Maybe." Hyungwon replied. "Have fun in Boston."

"I will." Kihyun said. And then, unexpectedly, he pulled Hyungwon into a hug. "I'm sorry. In another universe, maybe you two are happily in love with each other. Maybe this soulmate thing doesn't exist. Maybe everything will be fine."

"Maybe," Hyungwon repeated. But even maybe was too strong of a word.

 

 

Autumn had made itself known in the form of harsh wind and limited edition Starbucks coffee. Hyungwon started wearing more sweaters over his shirt. His co-workers looked at him with judgmental eyes but Hyungwon paid them no heed. Hyunwoo was okay with it. And he only needed the approval of his HR executive if it was regarding his work etiquette.

Hyungwon stifled a yawn as he entered the elevator. He pressed the button to his floor and waited for it to arrive. He greeted the young couple living on the floor below them. He saw dark spots and red pimples on their face. He looked away.

When Hyungwon unlocked the door to his apartment unit, he was surprised to see Minhyuk's shoes already at their doorway. He removed his shoes, placing them on the shoe rack at the side alongside Minhyuk's and walked inside. The sound of the television playing was loud. Hyungwon popped his head into the living room.

"Minhyuk?" Hyungwon called out.

Minhyuk was on the couch, head swaying from side to side. He was about to doze off with the TV on when he heard Hyungwon calling his name. He looked up and smile slightly. Hyungwon noted the tiredness in his eyes.

"Hey Wonnie," Minhyuk replied, blinking sleepily. "Welcome home."

"Are you okay Min? You look tired." Hyungwon stride over to the other. He sat beside Minhyuk who was looking half asleep.

"I am feeling little drowsy. My boss let me off early to rest. I cooked dinner."

"You didn't burn our kitchen didn't you?" Hyungwon asked. Over the years, Minhyuk's cooking had improved. If there was anyone who could burn their kitchen, it was without a doubt, Hyungwon. But with how sleepy Minhyuk looked, it could be a possibility.

"Of course not. I'm not you." He scoffed.

Hyungwon shook his head. "Why didn't you just call me? I could have buy us some takeouts."

"Don't wanna. I want to eat home-cooked meal for once. I stole the recipe from my mom." Minhyuk said. "It's fine. I cooked our dinner with less than three accidents."

"What happened?"

"Burn myself and accidentally cut myself with a knife."

Hyungwon sighed. "Let me see."

"It's fine, it's fine." Minhyuk shrugged him off. "I treated it properly. Can we just eat now? I've waited for you long enough."

"Okay, fine." Hyungwon sighed out. "Do you want to eat here or?"

"Here's fine."

"Alright, just sit down. I'll get our dinner."

Hyungwon head over to their kitchen. He plated the food and brought them one by one to the living room. The food was still warm, Minhyuk had probably finish cooking not long ago. Hyungwon removed his sweater and undo his tie. He settled down beside Minhyuk and ate his dinner. Minhyuk scooted closer to him. The news channel was on the screen.

"How's work, Wonnie?" Minhyuk asked him.

"It's fine. Nothing too interesting. My co-workers still hate me." Hyungwon answered.

"They don't hate you."

"They do." Hyungwon said. "How about you?"

"A lot of projects are coming in. I'm gonna get busy again." Minhyuk replied.

"Don't overwork yourself."

"I won't."

Their food was finished. They left their used plates on the coffee table. Hyungwon would deal with that later. Minhyuk leaned against him, resting his head on Hyungwon's shoulder. Hyungwon's hand reached up to rake through Minhyuk's orange locks.

"Are you tired?"

"A little bit."

"You should go to sleep."

"Maybe later."

Hyungwon hummed softly under his breath. The television played a music show programme. The idols on screen were shining brightly as they sang and danced. They looked lively.

"Have you found your soulmate, Hyungwon?"

Hyungwon paused his hand from raking Minhyuk's hair. "No," he answered.

Minhyuk hummed. "When will you find them?"

 _I already found them. They are currently in my arms._ "When the universe wants me to find them." Hyungwon answered.

Minhyuk nodded his head. "I'll head to my bedroom." He said and stood up.

Hyungwon watched as Minhyuk walked over to his bedroom. He didn't get to ask Minhyuk about his soulmate. He wondered if Minhyuk had found his soulmate. He wondered if it was him. He wondered if Minhyuk would forgive him if he knew Hyungwon was his soulmate. Hyungwon let the thoughts float by.

He stood up, taking the dishes to the sink. He would deal with that later or maybe in the morning. He took a shower before returning to his room. The sun had long set, even before Hyungwon had arrived home. Hyungwon sat down in front of his laptop. He started it up, thinking on checking his emails and finishing some work he brought back.

His fingers hovered over his keyboard. He was tempted to type in the exact sentence _'is it possible for your soulmate to not have you as their soulmate'_. He discarded the thought and swallowed down the curiousity. He knew there was possibilities. He knew there was a lot of them. He didn't dare discover it. He worked on his emails.

Hyungwon stretched out his limbs after slouching down in front of his laptop for so long. He glanced at the wall clock, the hands almost hitting midnight. He decided to retreat for the night. As Hyungwon waited for his laptop to shut down, there was a knock on his door. He turned to look and saw Minhyuk peeking his head in.

"Minhyuk?"

"Hey," Minhyuk said, entering the room. "You're not asleep yet?"

"No, I was checking my emails. I thought you went to bed earlier?" Hyungwon asked.

"I did. But I couldn't sleep." Minhyuk answered. "Can I, sleep with you?"

Hyungwon looked at the other's tired eyes. He wondered how long had Minhyuk stayed restless like this. "Of course you can."

Minhyuk smiled softly. He climbed into Hyungwon's bed, covering himself with Hyungwon's comforter. Hyungwon joined him. They slept on their sides, facing each other. Hyungwon reached a hand out to swipe away Minhyuk's fringe from his eyes.

"Did something happen?" Hyungwon whispered softly, afraid that any loud noises would disrupt the night's tranquility.

Minhyuk shook his head. "Can you sing for me Hyungwon?"

Hyungwon blinked sleepily. "I haven't sung anything in so long. I don't think I'm that good anymore."

"Please?" Minhyuk pleaded. "You always sing lullabies to me when we were kids."

He looked at Minhyuk's pleading eyes. The tiredness in his voice and face was visible. Hyungwon felt bad. "I can try." He said and that was enough for Minhyuk to smile brighter.

He sang an old lullaby from when they were kids. It was the same lullaby his mother used to sing for him. Back then Hyungwon would always sing for Minhyuk whenever the other couldn't sleep, afraid of the non-existent monsters under his bed. His voice now was not the same as when he was a child. It was smoother then, not touched by the essence of puberty.

But Minhyuk didn't seem to mind as he hummed softly with the tune. Hyungwon finished the song, watched as Minhyuk's breathing evened out. His mouth was slightly open. He looked peaceful when he was sleeping. Hyungwon smiled, carefully petting Minhyuk's hair.

"Goodnight, Minmin." He said before he joined Minhyuk to Dreamland, not bothering to wait for a reply. 

 

 

He woke up on Sunday morning and realized his hair had stopped falling. Hyungwon felt happy for once. But he couldn't be happy for long. The universe still hated him. When he walked over to his dressing mirror, the dark spots on his skin was more prominent.

Hyungwon sighed. It was as clear as day that Minhyuk was his soulmate. He should stop denying it now. At least now he didn't have to worry about hair loss.

He looked at his hair. The pink colour was fading already, leaving behind a serene white. Hyungwon couldn't tell if that was his hair or if it was the dye. He would pay Changkyun a visit later today. He wondered if silver would look good on him as much as pink. He left his room, only to see that Minhyuk was not around.

Minhyuk had been doing that lately. Going missing in early weekend mornings and coming back late at night. Hyungwon didn't know where Minhyuk was. Sometimes Minhyuk forgot to leave a note or a text and got Hyungwon worried over nothing when he came back. Sometimes their schedules clash and they didn't even see each other on weekdays. Sometimes Hyungwon yearned to spend time again with Minhyuk.

They hadn't been spending much time together, a contrast to when they were children and wouldn't let each other go. Sure they had their own separate circle of friends that they spend time with but even then they would make way to insert each other in their schedules. With work and everything in between, they hadn't even go out window shopping like they used to do when they were in college.

Their hangouts were limited to the daily dinner or weekly brunch they go out on. But while Minhyuk had been missing from their apartments, those food escapade had also disappear from their schedules.

Hyungwon didn't ask for Minhyuk to be glued to his side or all up on his face. He also didn't force Minhyuk to be on a constant chatter like when he was with someone else. But he wanted a little bit of Minhyuk's time, a little more of his attention.

Maybe Minhyuk had found out about him being his soulmate. Maybe Minhyuk was disgusted at him and thus had been avoiding Hyungwon. He wished the concept of soulmates never existed.

Hyungwon took a shower, washing away the grime and the sadness from his body. Maybe he stole a little bit of Minhyuk's shampoo. But Minhyuk didn't need to know that and if he found out, Hyungwon would just say his own bottle of shampoo was finished and it wasn't because he needed to breathe in Minhyuk's scent again. Goodness, he sounded like a creepy stalker.

He put on a simple match of clothing, took his phone, wallet and keys and left the apartment. When he arrived in front of Changkyun's apartment, the other looked deadly tired. He wondered why he looked so tired. He wondered why everyone around him looked tired. Minhyuk the other day, Changkyun right about now and him too, he was tired. Tired of the universe perhaps. Hyungwon wanted to stop playing games with the universe.

He glanced inside Changkyun's apartment, a few boxes laid on the floor. Hyungwon didn't care. "I need you to dye my hair."

Changkyun nodded his head sullenly. He opened the door wider. "Come on in."

Changkyun wordlessly brought him to the bathroom. He laid out the newspaper on the floor. Hyungwon opened the sink cabinet. He took the box of silver dye and placed it on the sink. Changkyun nodded his head. And then he started working on it.

Hyungwon's hair was white now so he didn't have to bleach it out again. Changkyun covered him up with a used cloth to avoid the dye from staining his clothes. He combed Hyungwon's hair, gently threading his fingers in his tresses. He started to apply the silver dye on Hyungwon's hair, spreading it out evenly.

They didn't talk much. Hyungwon stared at himself and then at Changkyun through their reflection in the mirror. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of the little tugs and pulls on his hair.

"Hyung," Changkyun called out to him softly. Hyungwon hummed in acknowledgement but he didn't open his eyes.

"I'm moving to America."

Hyungwon's eyes fluttered open. He stared at Changkyun through the mirror. "When?"

"Next year, after I finish my degree here. I'll continue my studies there. I already pack half of my things." Changkyun said.

"Do whatever your heart wants you to do, Kyun." Hyungwon told him.

"Should you really be saying that?" Changkyun asked. "Shouldn't you be the one who follow what you heart wants, hyung? Your heart wants Minhyuk hyung so why haven't you do anything yet?"

"That isn't up for me to decide."

"It isn't up for Minhyuk hyung to decide either."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Then when are you going to talk about it? Last time I checked, soulmates don't age backwards." Changkyun retorted.

"Not now and probably not ever. Maybe I will talk about it when I'm dead, in my afterlife."

"And if there's no such thing as an afterlife? If you never got the chance to talk about it?"

"Then I wouldn't talk about it." Hyungwon simply answered. "It's the best for me and for Minhyuk."

"Is it really the best when you're hurting yourself?" Changkyun asked.

Hyungwon kept quiet. He glanced at his hair that was smothered with silver dye. "It's the best." He answered, sounding sure but not feeling so sure with himself.

 

 

Hyungwon stood in front of Changkyun's doorway, now with silver hair instead of pink or white. He pulled Changkyun into a hug. "I'm gonna miss you when you leave."

"I'll call." Changkyun said, squeezing Hyungwon tighter. "I'm gonna miss you too, hyung."

They pulled apart. "Call me when you're about to leave. Let's spend a day together.

Changkyun smiled. "I will."

Hyungwon walked the way back home. The weather was nice today and he decided earlier to not drive to Changkyun's apartment. His mind wandered off when he settled down on the bus. Hyungwon realized that a lot of people around him was starting to leave him. First Kihyun and now Changkyun. Soon enough Minhyuk would leave him too. And he needed to prepare himself for that.

Hyungwon dropped off at his stop. He walked the few distance to his apartment building and rode the elevator to his floor. He was surprised to see someone sitting in front of his door.

"Minhyuk?" The other looked up from his phone. "What are you doing out here?"

Minhyuk smiled sheepishly. "I lost my keys."

Hyungwon arched an eyebrow. "Did you go and look for it?"

"No." Minhyuk said. "I'll just make a new one." He paused to look at Hyungwon. "No one will use that key to rob us right?"

"We don't even have anything valuable." They didn't. Their money were in their bank accounts. Maybe the LED TV and game consoles could be sellable but there really wasn't anything valuable in an apartment owned by two young males.

"But we do have something valuable."

"What?"

"Our friendship!"

Hyungwon chuckled amusedly. "No one wants to steal that, Minhyuk."

"But how would you know? Maybe they're jealous of us or something." Minhyuk replied. "I can't lose you to a robber, Hyungwon."

Hyungwon walked forward. He combed out Minhyuk's hair with his fingers. "You won't lose me to anyone Min."

Minhyuk raised his head to look at Hyungwon. His big, beady eyes were barely seen in the dark of their apartment corridor. Hyungwon's heart skipped a beat. He suppressed the blush creeping up his neck.

"Really?" He asked.

"You have my words."

Minhyuk smiled. "Do you want to go out Hyungwon? It's been awhile since we take a walk around the park."

Hyungwon couldn't pass of such opportunity.

"Sure, let's go."

They left the apartment building, Minhyuk bundled up in his sweater and Hyungwon still with the clothes he worn when he went to Changkyun's apartment. They walked to the park behind their apartment building. It was a short walk. They made small talks here and there but never more than to fill the gap of silence.

Autumn was beautiful even with its fallen leaves and bare trees. The weather was getting colder now. Winter was coming soon. It was time to add thick layers of clothing over that sweater. But that was a worry for when winter came.

The day was getting shorter. The skies were getting darker. Soon enough the sun would set. But before that happen they would walk around the park, enjoying the little peace before dusk. They had been to this park before, shortly after they moved in. It was a community park, it wasn't small as everyone around the area shared it. There was a man-made lake and a playground for kids. It wasn't the prettiest park Hyungwon had been to but it was well-kept and nice.

Minhyuk scooted closer to Hyungwon. He pulled at Hyungwon's arm and hugged his arm. They ended up waddling their way around with how tightly Minhyuk was pressed against Hyungwon. This was normal for them. Minhyuk was affectionate and loved skin contact. Hyungwon was there to provide ever since they were toddlers.

They watched the sun set on the horizon, the lake reflecting the beautiful orange and pink hues. They stayed there for a while longer. Watched the sun set and looked as the light blue sky turned a darker colour.

"Have you ever think of the future Hyungwon?" Minhyuk asked.

"Yeah, I'm thinking about it right now. I wonder what we should have for dinner." Hyungwon said.

Minhyuk laughed. "Not the near future, silly. The far future, have you ever thought about it?"

"Oh," Hyungwon mumbled. "Not exactly."

Minhyuk hummed. "I've thought about it. I wanna quit my job."

"You wanna quit your job?" Minhyuk nodded his head. "Why?"

"It's tiring." Minhyuk said. "I wanna do something for myself for once. I'm thinking of freelancing. It's gonna be hard but I will try my best."

Hyungwon turned to face Minhyuk, the other doing the same. They stood in front of each other. There was a little uncertainty in Minhyuk's eyes but Hyungwon could easily erase that look off his face. He wanted Minhyuk to believe in himself. He was going to make Minhyuk believe in himself. Even if Minhyuk didn't believe in soulmates.

"I'll be here to support you."

"You always have."

"Because I am and I will."

"Thank you, Wonnie." Minhyuk said. He spared Hyungwon a smile. "I don't know what I'll do without you."

His eyes was shining. Hyungwon didn't know if it was the reflection from the street lights or if it was naturally a Minhyuk thing. But he liked the twinkle in Minhyuk's eyes. The beautiful shine that glistened in the night sky. Hyungwon thought he might have a lot of love to spare for Minhyuk. Anything for Minhyuk.

 

 

Hyungwon wasn't a big fan of Christmas. His family wasn't the biggest in celebrations. The Lee couple were though and they passed down the attribute to Minhyuk. But this wasn't about Minhyuk. He leaned against the wall of his cubicle.

It was December 23rd. Time had passed so quickly that Hyungwon barely remembered anything. Minhyuk quit his job and was now working as a freelancer. He thought he would do badly but he was doing fine. Hyungwon thought he was doing better than working at the office. At least Minhyuk was happy with what he was doing now.

December 23rd was the marked date for his office's annual Christmas dinner. Again, Hyungwon wasn't a big fan of Christmas. But he needed to show up to keep up his reputation.

The party was a little boring in Hyungwon's opinion. His co-workers was already half drunk. Jooheon wasn't here tonight, already went back home for the holidays. Hyungwon kind of miss his company. At least Jooheon was better than drunk middle-aged men. He sighed, walking out to the open area to get some fresh air.

He was met with Hyunwoo's buff shoulders instead, the HR executive leaning against the railings. Hyunwoo turned around and Hyungwon bowed his head at him. "Hyunwoo-ssi,"

"Hyung is fine." Hyunwoo cut him off. Hyungwon took careful steps and stood beside Hyunwoo. "Not enjoying the party?"

Hyungwon shook his head softly. "Not really my type."

Hyunwoo hummed. "Me either." He said. "Say Hyungwon, I don't mean to pry but how are things with your soulmate? You can choose to not answer the question if you don't feel like it."

Hyungwon exhaled. "Complicated."

"I see." The silence greeted them. Hyungwon didn't know if he was supposed to keep the conversation going or leave it be. He didn't need to figure it out because Hyunwoo spoke up.

"How old do you think I am, Hyungwon?" Hyunwoo asked. "Based on how I look."

Hyungwon stared at Hyunwoo's facial features. It would be weird to stare at his HR's face so closely but Hyunwoo did insist. Hyunwoo had two slanted eyes, ones that looked like crescent moons when he smiled. He was baby-faced but the acne scars on his skin told another story. The barely visible dark spots from lack of pigmentation and the little crease at the corner of his eyes were signs of him aging but not in the same level as Hyungwon's other co-workers who were well in their 40s.

"35 maybe? 36?" Hyungwon guessed.

Hyunwoo nodded his head. "I guess I still am. But if I count correctly then I would be 91 years old this year."

Hyungwon gaped at him. "Ninety- wha- you're older than my dad." He sputtered out.

Hyunwoo laughed. The sound rumbling from inside his chest. "Yeah, I'm that old."

"Can I even call you hyung?" Hyungwon asked. It would be far-fetched to call Hyunwoo hyung if he was older than Hyungwon's father.

"I like to feel young since I already look so." Hyunwoo shrugged off. "I had a wife. She was pretty, beautiful. She was my soulmate and even if she wasn't I would have loved her dearly."

"We got married after I had finished my military services. We were finally expecting a baby after years of marriage. I don't mind the gender but she insisted that it would be a baby boy. We never got to know. The baby died with her."

"Died?" Hyungwon asked carefully.

Hyunwoo nodded his head. "In an accident, took both of their lives. I was devastated, grieving. The pimple on my skin stop itching so much and my skin stopped sagging. I stopped growing old and it pained me. A lot of times I wanted to kill myself just to end my suffering. But I know it wasn't what she wanted. I learned to accept her death. It took a very long time until I could fully get up on my feet. I started doing different things to distract me from the sadness. I took different courses in universities. Sometimes, overworking myself just made me remember her more."

Hyunwoo looked sad. A thousand memories flashing through the other's mind. Hyungwon didn't want to pry further but he voiced out the one question he had in mind.

"Do you miss her?"

Hyunwoo scoffed and Hyungwon flinched the slightest bit. "Do I miss her? Of course I do. I try to look for her face among the sea of people I meet. I can never find her. Maybe she stayed in heaven, waiting for me or maybe she wants me to wait for her. I don't know. But I miss her and I want to see her soon."

Hyungwon looked away. The city was coloured with different lights. The buildings before them still had their lights on even when it was almost midnight. Working late hours even on a holiday.

"The thing about soulmate is, they're like an attachment." Hyunwoo said. "It's hard to explain. Maybe the idea of soulmates are confusing to some but if you were to really get to know your soulmate then you'll know how fulfilling it feels. The happiness from being with your soulmate is incomparable."

"Life works in weird ways Hyungwon. Maybe the universe is a little bit wicked but the universe knows what it's doing. The universe doesn't want you to regret anything. If you love them, tell them. Don't wait until it is too late." Hyunwoo told him. He patted Hyungwon's shoulders and then went inside the building.

The stars tonight was awfully bright. It reminded Hyungwon of Minhyuk's eyes. The beautiful twinkle in his brown orbs. The gentle smile that was touched slightly by the sunlight. The clear laughter on a serene night. There was something warm settling in his heart. Something that bubbled inside him like fireworks when the mere thought of Minhyuk grazed his mind. Perhaps it was love.

 

 

The snow was piling up outside. Hyungwon and Minhyuk had decided to stay indoors for New Year's eve. There was not much to celebrate, no one to spend it with. Hyungwon was waiting for the hot water to boil when Minhyuk walked into their balcony to wait for the fireworks. He made two mugs of hot chocolate, one for himself and one for Minhyuk.

He stood at the doorway. Minhyuk was in their balcony, the other was wearing only a thin layer of hoodie. The blanket he was using was placed on their couch in the living room. Hyungwon moved to hold the two mugs in one hand and grabbed the blanket. It was a little bit difficult but he tried his best.

He walked out to their balcony. Minhyuk was already leaning against the railings, staring ahead at the streetlights and starry sky. He draped the blanket over Minhyuk's shoulder.

"It's cold outside." He said, handing over a mug of hot chocolate.

Minhyuk mumbled a thank you as he took the mug and carefully sipped the hot beverage. He held the mug with two hands, warming up his freezing fingers. "It's a beautiful New Year's eve, isn't it Won?"

Hyungwon shrugged his shoulders. "It doesn't feel different to me. Still a freezing cold winter night just like every other night."

Minhyuk laughed. Hyungwon turned around to face the inside of their apartment, his back leaning against the railings. Minhyuk was busy staring at the street below them, Hyungwon occupied with his hot chocolate. There was no words between them. They didn't need words. Silence was as much company as they were to each other. This winter night was meant to be quiet anyway. Just before the fireworks start at midnight.

"Hey Hyungwon," Minhyuk called out. Hyungwon raised his head to look at Minhyuk. "Do you think your soulmate is out there?"

Hyungwon glanced over his shoulders. The street was busy tonight. It was New Year's Eve after all. Nobody wanted to stay indoors. Everyone was out there, drinking beer and having fun with friends at parties. Hyungwon got a text earlier from Changkyun. Even the kid was having fun with his college friends for his last year before he flew to America. Only Hyungwon and Minhyuk was here, in their quaint apartment sipping hot chocolate on their balcony. This was their New Year's eve and it was perfect.

"No. He's not out there."

Minhyuk's eyes fluttered towards him. Hyungwon was usually the taller one between them, having to look down slightly to meet the other's eyes. But with Hyungwon's back against the railing and Minhyuk standing straight with his mug of hot chocolate, they were almost eye-to-eye.

"He?" Minhyuk asked.

Hyungwon nodded his head.

He looked at Hyungwon, his uneven blinking making him look more innocent than normal. His hair was as white as the snow piling up the streets down below. He looked pure under their dimmed balcony light and the plaid blanket over his shoulders. Minhyuk hold his mug in one hand and tugged at one end of his blanket.

"How do you know?" He was whispering now. His voice so soft and fragile Hyungwon would have missed it.

Hyungwon took a deep breath, staring at the dark brown orbs that he had seen ever since he was a three years old. The same pair of eyes that had look at him with so much affection and adoration over these past years. The same eyes he had fallen in love with.

"Because he's right here, right now, with me." Hyungwon said.

Minhyuk's breath hitched. His eyes was misty, tears threathening to fall. And fall it did like a huge downpour. Hyungwon smiled, almost sadly. He wondered if Minhyuk's tears was out of happiness or out of sadness.

"Is it true? Am I really your soulmate, Wonnie?" Minhyuk hiccuped.

Hyungwon nodded his head. "Yes Minhyuk, you are."

Minhyuk inhaled sharply. He stepped away from the railing and crouched down. His body shaking badly from how much he was crying. Hyungwon felt bad. He thought he should have comforted Minhyuk. Maybe shutting up was better than blurting out that Minhyuk was his soulmate. He didn't get to say anything as Minhyuk raised up his head, tears glistening in the night sky.

"I love you." Minhyuk whispered out between sniffles.

Hyungwon blinked in surprise. "What?"

Minhyuk sniffled, placing his mug of hot chocolate on the floor. He tried to wipe away his tears but it kept falling. Even more than the last time. "I was scared. I was scared that I was your soulmate but you weren't mine."

Hyungwon looked confused. "But you weren't aging!" He accused.

"Do you think you're the only one who's been hiding?" Minhyuk asked.

It was then Hyungwon realized, the dark circles under Minhyuk's eyes, the wrinkles slowly forming around his eyes, barely there but almost visible. And maybe the reason why Minhyuk dyed his hair a snow white wasn't because he wanted to try out a new colour but he was hiding the greying hairs. The awful lot of make-up products around their apartment. The same things he had been hiding from Minhyuk was the same thing that was being hidden from him.

"I don't understand." Hyungwon answered, confusion evident in his voice.

"I realized that I was your soulmate when I started having dark circles around my eyes. You had them too but I think you never noticed it before. I started having grey hairs but it wasn't as visible. You should have gotten them too but then you showed up with pink hair and I knew something was wrong." Minhyuk said.

"Your hair was pink and then silver. You started using a lot of foundations to cover up. I thought you hated me being your soulmate Hyungwon that was why I started to hide them more from you. I went for extra measures so that nothing would be visible for you to see. I was scared that you would hate me. And I didn't want that."

Hyungwon swallowed down the guilt building up in him. "But, I was doing those things for you." He said.

"I was happy. Minhyuk, I was so happy to find out I was your soulmate. But then I was scared. Scared that you would hate me as much as you hate the idea of soulmates. I didn't want to lose you."

Minhyuk stared at him dazedly. He stood up in front of Hyungwon.

"Hyungwon, I hated the idea of soulmates because it didn't make sense to me to love someone you barely know. That didn't mean I didn't want to try to work things out with my soulmate if I ever meet them. And to know that you are my soulmate, _gosh_ Hyungwon, I have never been happier." Minhyuk said, cupping his cheek with both hands.

"I hate the idea of soulmates but I don't hate the idea of you. I like the idea of you and me. I love the idea of us together."

He pulled Hyungwon's face closer. Their foreheads touched, their noses inches apart and the puffed out breaths from their lips mixed together and swirled in the winter night of New Year's eve. Hyungwon closed his eyes, inhaling softly.

The clock striked midnight. The fireworks was loud behind him. But he couldn't hear anything, only feeling Minhyuk's lips against his.

**Author's Note:**

> happy new years everyone! see you in 2019 :)


End file.
